"We didn't want anyone to be cold, especially around Thanksgiving and Christmas time."
Future Oklahoma teachers helped the community stay warm this holiday season by providing free blankets to those who need them the most.
Students from the Teacher Preparation program at Francis Tuttle Technology Center held their inaugural blanket drive in the run-up to Thanksgiving break. They collected 140 donated blankets — far exceeding their initial goal — and handed them out to more than 100 people.
“Part of being a teacher is just being a good person. You have to love what you do,” Kasandra Tabers, a Putnam City North graduate in her first year of Teacher Prep, said. “That’s what really influenced us. We didn’t want anyone to be cold, especially around Thanksgiving and Christmastime.”
The group partnered with The Comeback Kid Society, an Oklahoma City nonprofit that focuses on providing assistance to at-risk youth in foster group homes, juvenile detention centers, and throughout the community. In addition to blankets, community partners provided food and connections to additional resources at the event.
Tabers said the group of students first came up with the idea of a blanket drive during a workshop at an FCCLA leadership conference. After hearing about successful community service projects, the blanket drive idea stuck with them.
Instructor Janet Harris guided the group in setting goals and a timeline. Harris said they plan to do this again next year since it was so successful.
“Ms. Harris suggested since it was the first time, we should start smaller,” Taber said. “So we decided 50 blankets was better. We reached that goal within three days.”
Everyone who got in line at the event received at least one blanket, Taber said. Some walked away with two based on need.
Blanket donations were collected in boxes that were placed across Francis Tuttle campuses.
