Novi Elementary Students Raise $360 for Dexter Tornado Relief

Although Dexter is nearly 40 miles away, the damage done when a t nearly two weeks ago hit home for several people in Novi.

students Jack Franchino and Anthony Mascari both have cousins whose houses were damaged in the tornado and knew Principal Jenifer Michos' mother's house was hit, as well.

After , Jack and Anthony decided to do something to help. The two fourth graders organized a fundraiser at their school; if students brought in a dollar on Thursday, they could wear a hat all day.

The students came together to raise $360 and counting. 

Reaching out

It seems like an odd coincidence that Jack and Anthony, who live in the same neighborhood in Novi, both have cousins in Dexter who were affected by the tornado.

A side of Anthony's cousins' house was taken, and Jack's cousins' house is in pieces.

"It was really scary," Jack said.

Anthony remembers watching the news and seeing .

"They can't go outside because there's all this glass everywhere," he said.

The two are good friends and ride the same bus. After talking about the damages, they decided that the school should do a fundraiser like the one they did for the earthquake in Japan.

They approached Michos at the beginning of the week and told her what they wanted to do. She was thrilled with the idea and had the boys make an announcement on the PA system. Emails were also sent home to parents to let them know about the fundraiser.

Michos, herself, has an emotional tie to the tornado. Her mother lives in the house she once lived in, and it suffered structural damage. But she says they feel very fortunate.

"It's all relative when you look down the street and you see the house that's not there," she said.

Michos was hoping some of the students would want to give back to the community, but didn't want to be the one to drive it.

"I'm thrilled to see it's student-driven and they realize that their leadership can make a difference," she said.

She said the , but the fundraising process is also a great experience for the students.

School helping school

Parkview's connections to Dexter continue. Previous Parkview special education teacher Wendy Martin had significant damage to her home.

Mary Cooper, a previous writing teacher in Novi, is now a principal at Wylie Elementary School in Dexter. Students at the school have been shaken up by the tragedy, and the and teddy bears for comfort.

Parkview students also brought in toys and teddy bears Thursday to be given to students in Cooper's school.

Part of the money raised will go to the 24 Dexter school staff members who were directly affected by the storm through the Dexter Community Schools Staff Relief Fund. The other half of the money will go to the Dexter Relief Fund. 

Anthony and Jack said they feel extremely happy with the amount of money that was raised and hope it can be good enough to help several families.

"I talked to my uncle, and he said he's proud of me," Anthony said.