“Every student matters” is the slogan of Tennessee Wesleyan College’s Education Angels, a student organization that provides students an environment for developing fellowship, personal growth, service opportunities and involvement in activities pertaining to education.

Education Angels annually raises funds for and distributes “We Care Packages” to local schools. This year the organization donated packages full of markers, pens, paper, highlighters, crayons and other supplies to local schools including E.K. Baker, Englewood, Mountain View, Riceville, Rogers Creek, Niota, Westside, North City and Calhoun.

“Each school received 10 packages for 10 of their teachers who needed it the most,” said Rachel McDonald, president of Education Angels. “Elementary schools really need help with supplies.

“These types of donations are important for the students because if a child is from a low income family, they don't always have the supplies they need for school. Donations like this are also important for the college because it gets Education Angels' name out to the community and our members get a great satisfaction from doing what we can to help out our local schools.”

Education Angels has donated to both city and county schools, alternating their donation sites throughout the years.

“The teachers that receive these packages can use the extra supplies to help get them through the rest of the school year,” said Ashley Chamness, Education Angels vice president. “Times are rough right now and donations like this can give teachers’ wallets a break. I hope our donations will allow the teachers to spend some extra money on bigger, more important supplies that they might need.”

The members of Education Angels started raising funds back in the fall for this year’s “We Care Packages” service project. Candle sales at TWC’s Fall Homecoming, poinsettia sales at Christmas and a Valentine’s Day bake sale generated funding for the project.

“We raised enough money to purchase supplies for all nine of our donation schools. I hope these supply boxes will be the extra boost to get the teachers through the rest of the school year,” said Tim Kukla, the Student Government Association representative for Education Angels. “It was very rewarding to see how thankful each school was to get supplies.”

Together, Education Angels officers McDonald, Chamness and Kukla, with Lisa Latham, treasurer, and Amy Eastridge, secretary, agree that the project was made possible by the dedication and work of all of the group’s members.

“Our members were very active through the whole process,” said McDonald. “We are very proud the project was so successful.”

Tennessee Wesleyan College, founded in Athens, Tenn., in 1857, is a four-year liberal arts institution affiliated with the Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church. The college’s dedicated faculty and staff believe in providing the resources and support students need to become socially responsible, intellectually skilled and spiritually developed members of our community. For additional information about Tennessee Wesleyan College, visit www.twcnet.edu, become a TWC fan on Facebook or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/TWCnews.  TWC's Education Angels donate supplies to local schools