Park Avenue student council to host Parkinson’s Walk Friday, fundraising goal met and rising

The Park Avenue Elementary Student Council has surpassed its own ambitious fundraising goal, raising an impressive $4,638 (so far!) for their first-ever Parkinson’s Walk fundraiser. The walk itself will take place on Friday, April 25.

Originally aiming for $2,500, the students have already exceeded that goal by nearly 50%, making them the 11th highest contributors nationwide to the Michael J. Fox Foundation, dedicated to finding a cure for Parkinson’s disease. The inspiration for this initiative came from fourth-grade council member Reagan Loftus, who proposed the event in honor of her nana Janice, who is currently battling Parkinson’s.

Over the past month, council members have enthusiastically promoted the fundraiser through flyers and their own student-produced commercial. With just a day to go until the walk, they continued preparations this morning, creating colorful lawn signs to decorate the school’s sports field, many dedicating their participation to loved ones affected by Parkinson’s.

“It feels amazing to raise money for people with Parkinson’s – I never thought we’d get this far,” Reagan said.

The Parkinson’s Walk on Friday will take place from 5:30 to 6:30 pm on the school field, followed by a celebration until 7:00 pm. Registration is still open for anyone interested in participating in the walk, but EVERYONE is welcome to attend the event and show support, even without signing up.

Whether you attend or not, you can still donate to the cause! Donations can be made directly by using this Park Avenue Donations link.

Thank you, and job well done, to all the hardworking student council members and their co-advisors, Theresa Canfield and Amy Buliung!

2024-2025 Park Avenue Student Council
Cora Bendykowski, Grace Bendykowski, Brendan Brown, Ellie Conklin, Isabella Crispino, Reagan Loftus, Gavin Martin, Maggie McKnight, Isabelle Piascik, Logan Reilly, Rylee Rodriguez, Leah Romig, Keira Sandfort, Lily Szpajzman.

And you can watch their student-produced fundraising commercial right here...