Envirathon Servathon 2017

Posted on: April 6th, 2017

Good for our Earth. Good for our Community.

DATE CHANGE! Due to the Special Weather Advisory for our original date, Envirathon Servathon has been changed to Monday, May 8th! Read on to learn more about this important day in the life of our school.

Click here to sponsor a student with an online donation.

What is Envirathon Servathon?

Envirathon Servathon (ES) is a fundraising campaign where you sponsor Rockway students to spend a full day doing GOOD WORK – either environmentally-helpful jobs (e.g. planting trees) or community service jobs (e.g. sorting clothes at a thrift store). The entire school community, students & teachers alike, head into the fields, forests, rivers, soup kitchens and thrift stores to spend a day working together for a good cause! See the 2017 ES Job Site list here.

How does the fundraising part work?

Each student fundraises for their Envirathon Servathon day. The donations they collect from you go toward enhancing Rockway’s campus and programs. Students help decide how the money is spent. Sometimes items are for academic-specific purposes (e.g. the zero emissions electric truck in our Design & Tech department), and sometimes they are to enhance the school-at-large (solar panels for our roof).

Watch this highlight video from our 2012 Envirathon Servathon:

Why is ES important?

ES is a win-win for all involved – our Earth, our community, and Rockway.

Thanks to your support:

Our earth and community benefit from a full-day of free “green” labour and support for local organizations.
Students experience a day of hands-on, community-building work that teaches them the importance of volunteering.
Rockway benefits from being able to improve our facilities and equipment with campaign proceeds.

How can you sponsor a student?

Students receive their Sponsor/Pledge Forms on April 11. To sponsor a Rockway student, simply let the student know the amount you wish to donate, along with your contact information for receipting purposes (donations of $10 or more are eligible for tax receipts).

As a sponsor, you can make a cash donation, give a cheque (made out to Rockway Mennonite Collegiate) or give by credit card – online, by phone (519-743-5209) or at the office during school hours. Students will NOT collect credit card information.

If you Pledge to donate, please pay your pledge (cash, cheque, credit card) by May 10th. Unpaid pledges will be invoiced.

Thanks for your support!

Questions? Contact 519-743-5209 or advancement@rockway.ca

Information for Parents & Students

Who participates in ES?

All students (grades 7 – 12) participate in this event. The day runs on regular school hours (8:10 am – 3:10 pm). There are no classes held that day – students go to their homerooms and they are directed to their job from there.

Is there a rain date for ES?
No! The day will happen rain or shine – so please dress in layers, and come prepared to spend the day outside.

Who gets to decide what the money is spent on?
Rockway’s student council works with faculty & administration on deciding how the money is distributed each year. This allows students to have a say in our spending priorities and invests them in the outcome.

Do students collect the money themselves?
Yes, they invite people to donate – cash, cheque (made out to Rockway Mennonite Collegiate), or credit card (only online, phone or office – STUDENTS WILL NOT COLLECT CREDIT CARD INFORMATION). Online donations are electronically receipted right away. Rockway will issue tax receipts for donations of $10 or more, regardless of payment type. This year, we are encouraging a fundraising goal of $100/student or family; that’s 10 sponsors at $10 each or 5 at $20 each, and so on. If we meet this goal, we’ll raise over $25,000!!!

What types of jobs will students do?
Jobs have included tree planting, trail and river clean-up, working in food banks, soup kitchens, thrift shops and supporting related community service agencies in the region. See the 2017 ES Job Site list here.

Here’s a quick breakdown of who’s doing what:

Rockway will:

arrange/assign a job for each student. (Students always work in groups with supervision).
arrange transportation to/from job site.
credit each participating student with 6 Community Service Hours towards their diploma.
process donations and pledges, and issue tax receipts for all contributions of $10 or more.

Students will:

seek sponsorship for their day of volunteering from friends and family.
begin collecting sponsors on April 11 and return their Sponsor/Pledge Forms and monies on May 10, 2017
bring a lunch on May 8th and come dressed for the weather

Click here to sponsor a student with an online donation.