Earning $600 For Relay For Life—

Fourth Graders Pass The Hat On Hat Day

By Susan Coney

Recently, two fourth graders from Sandy Hook School boldly wore their baseball caps into Assistant Principal Cathy Mazzariello’s office and inquired why they were not allowed to wear hats in school.

Mrs Mazz, as she is known at Sandy Hook, explained to the boys that removing one’s hat when entering a school is a sign of respect. The two fourth graders then respectfully removed their baseball caps.

Classmates Brenden Williams and Zachery Carfi understood what Mrs Mazz had told them, but they worked together to come up with a plan to allow them to wear their caps for one day at school. The concept first came about when Brenden, who was very excited about a new baseball cap he had just gotten, talked with his father at dinner the night before about wearing his new hat to school. His father, Bill Williams, suggested that Brenden propose a Hat Day, which spurred on the entire event.

Brenden said that he got the idea after the discussion he had with his father and talked to his friend Zach the next day on the bus, asking him to help. The boys proceeded to plan the event after speaking with Mrs Mazz and getting her permission and input.

 Brenden and Zach met during lunch periods and recesses to plan and prepare for Hat Day. They decided it would be a fundraiser and that the proceeds would go to Relay For Life, which is a major fundraiser for the American Cancer Society. The students decided to collect one dollar from students and staff who would like to wear a hat on the designated Hat Day.

Brenden and Zach designed a flyer, which was sent home to parents informing them of the event. They prepared signs, labeled envelopes, and delivered them to classrooms. The boys spoke to classes about the upcoming fundraiser.

Mrs Mazz said, “The boys took an idea and they ran with it. They took responsibility and they took every step so seriously. It was great. They gave up lunch and recess time to do this. It’s nice when children initiate and do things on their own.”

Zach said, “We learned that giving to charity is a good thing. We wanted to help a charity.” Brenden agreed and said that both boys learned a great deal like how to organize and work together. “We had a lot of fun and learned a lot of math,” he said.

Hat Day turned out to be a popular event at Sandy Hook School and the boys collected and were able to donate more than $600 to Relay For Life. The next overnight Relay For Life event will be held in Newtown on June 10–11.