Heritage School raises $26,000 for annual Can-A-Thon

Pictured above – Members of The Heritage School Key Club present a check to the Newnan Junior Service League … (Left to Right) Amelia Thornton, Laci Johnson, Cole Wilgus, Adam Richards, Henry Wilgus, Mack Mikko, Sam Knight, and Noah Conner.

From Special Reports

Every year, The Heritage School raises funds for the Newnan Junior Service League’s (NJSL) annual Can-A-Thon. This year, Heritage Hawks raised over $26,000 — a record-breaking amount for the school’s yearly fundraiser.

The effort, led by Key Club Sponsor and Heritage faculty Gina Watkiss and the Key Club members, make significant contributions to the Can-A-Thon every year. To further increase involvement and raise even more funds for the campaign, the Heritage School ran a one-week King-A-Thon for Can-A-Thon to determine their 2022 Homecoming King.

Senior boys were nominated for Homecoming King through an initial donation. After securing their nomination, students, friends, and family “voted” for their favorite senior to win the crown. Every dollar donated to the campaign equaled one vote. During the one week campaign, the Heritage School had 148 unique donors give $26,153. LJ Estrada raised the most amount of funds for the campaign and was crowned Homecoming King during the school’s 2022 Powderpuff Game. Jack Butler, as the senior who had the most unique donors, was crowned the Homecoming Prince. Estrada and Butler presented the check to The Heritage School Key Club President Henry Wilgus and Vice President Mack Mikko during the Homecoming Half-Time Ceremony.

The Heritage Students were then on hand during the Can-A-Thon event on November 29 to present the check to NJSL. Wilgus was honored to be the school’s representative chosen to deliver the check.

“Can-a-thon is such a fun way to get our school involved in the community,” Wilgus said. “The amount of money we raised this year was amazing and getting to hand the check to the food pantry representatives made me proud to be representing our school.”

Mikko was also present at the Can-A-Thon and has been a contributing member of the fundraiser throughout his time at Heritage. He said of the event, “Being a part of Heritage for a long time, I have been able to help donate cans and see others donate them to the food pantry. It’s encouraging knowing how easy it is to make others happy with such a simple task, and I think the Can-A-Thon is a great way to get Heritage involved with the community. I am thankful for all of the families who gave and how much money we were able to raise!”

In addition to Wilgus and Mikko, over 40 other students volunteered to help sort and prepare donations to be distributed to Coweta families. Miss Gina Watkiss, who has been helping organize the Heritage School’s Key Club involvement for over 30 years, says, “It’s wonderful seeing Newnan come together to help their neighbors in need!”

A portion of the raised funds went to purchasing turkeys and hams. All Heritage Students will further contribute to the campaign during their “Drop Everything and Serve” Day on December 16 by bringing in shelf-stable foods and creating food packages to further donate to the campaign.

Homecoming Prince Jack Butler and Homecoming King LJ Estrada present the
Can-A-Thon check at The Heritage School’s Homecoming Ceremonies.

Heritage Key Club Members volunteer their time during the NSJL’s Can-A-Thon
event. Pictured from Left to Right are Lendy Johnston, Lili Haddad, and Elle Hutcherson.

Heritage Key Club Members volunteer their time during the NSJL’s Can-A-Thon
event. Pictured from Left to Right are Nia Jackson, Elle Hutcherson , and Lili Haddad.