“For lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth; the time of singing has come…” Song of Solomon 2:11-12a (NKJV)
Had King Solomon uttered these words in New England, he perhaps would have said, “For lo, the winter is past, the snow is melted and gone,” but we get the idea.
Even in January, Dublin Christian Academy is looking ahead to the things that spring brings—particularly our Annual Spring Fundraiser and the Schoolwide Service Project.
We are excited to share both events with you and explain how they are used to serve our school and our community.
What Is the Schoolwide Service Project?
DCA’s Schoolwide Service Project is exactly as it sounds—a project that involves the entire school and focuses on giving back to the community. This is our way of saying “thank you” to our community for the support they give us not only through the annual spring fundraiser (more on that in a bit) but throughout the year.
This project is a collaborative effort between the staff and the students. This is not only meaningful for our school, but it also positively impacts the community, giving our students an opportunity to put our values into practice.
Other positive outcomes stem from this project as well. It gives the DCA family a chance to show their gratitude and care for our community—an integral part of what makes DCA what it is today. Our school would not be the same without our community.
Speaking of which, we are recognizing our first responders in our Service Project this year to thank them for all that they do for us. From responding to smoke alarms set off by burnt popcorn to offering comfort and support during the loss of a staff member, our firefighters, police, and EMTs deserve our appreciation. This year, we’re honored to honor them.
Our Annual Spring Fundraiser
The Annual Spring Fundraiser is used to reach beyond the school’s needs that are supported by tuition and even the Annual Fund—the latter two sources pay for or supplement the essentials, i.e. teachers’ salaries and textbooks.
The Spring Fundraiser is essential to supporting the capital projects that take place here at DCA.
In particular, it allows our student body to reach out to their families, friends, and the community to ask for their support by investing in the future of DCA. It also offers students a fun chance to earn prizes as the money is raised for the fund.
One important note. We don’t think of the Spring Fundraiser as simply a capital campaign to buy new playground equipment or give our recreational areas a fresh coat of paint. When our donors give to the fundraiser, they are in fact investing in the future of DCA—by offering our young students safe and engaging spaces to learn and grow. Our donors invest in more than just brick and mortar. They are investing in the future of Christian education and the lives of countless young hearts and minds. And for that, we are so grateful!
What Has the Schoolwide Service Project Looked Like In Past Years?
Our service projects in years past have been engaging, heart-warming, and lots of fun as we are giving back to the community. Here’s a quick look at service projects from the past three years:
2021: In 2021, DCA made and delivered about 100 hot meals to local home-bound families in the local community.
2022: In 2022, DCA made and delivered cookies to all staff in the Monadnock Hospital Community, and to a department at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Milford.
2023: And lastly, in 2023, DCA packed food for 200 students with gift bags and notes in the ConVal School District as a part of the End 68 Hours of Hunger project. This project not only eliminates the physical hunger that school-aged children experience during the weekend, but it also alleviates the “fear of hunger” that affects the students’ behavior at school.
As you can imagine, these experiences are as rewarding to our students as they are to the community members who benefit from the project.
The 2024 Schoolwide Service Project
As we mentioned earlier, this year we will be honoring our first responders for our Schoolwide Service Project. To say, “thank you” for the tireless and courageous acts performed by these wonderful men and women in our community, our school will be delivering care packages to the first responders in the communities surrounding DCA.
Our first responders deserve our thanks each and every day, and this year, we hope to thank them just a little bit more.
Thank you all for your service!
It’s All Because of YOU
Thank you to all of our community members who supported us in last year’s Spring Fundraiser. Because of you, our students can grow and succeed in an environment that is nurturing and safe—because of you DCA is a school that can be enjoyed by all for years to come. This project also generates feelings of generosity that become habitual in our students with the long-lasting impact that it provides.
If you would like to partner with us to sponsor our Service Project, or if you know someone else who may be interested, please contact us and we can let you know how you can support DCA today.
We hope you are also as excited about our School-Wide Service Projects as we are. We share a special bond with our families and our communities, and this is just one way we can show the love of Jesus through serving others and putting their needs above our own.
Let’s serve those who serve.
“Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing.”
1 Thessalonians 5:11 (NKJV)
