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I. Executive Summary
Our DECA Chapter at Denham Springs High School wanted to continue the tradition of raising money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Our chapter chose to hold a “Miracle Minute”, our Annual MDA Powder Puff Game, a Gatti’s Pizza night, Best seat in the house, and an MDA Jail and Bail. We hoped to raise a minimum of $3,000 toward the MDA organization.
The first event that Denham Springs High School DECA Chapter held was a Gatti’s night at a local pizza restaurant.
For every person that placed an order and mentioned MDA 10% of the proceeds went to MDA. To prepare, we made announcements, hung fliers, and posted on social media. For this events first time I think it was a hit. We raised $73.00 from Gatti’s. The second event that we conducted was the MDA Jail and Bail. Our school was lucky enough to have a morning pep rally hosted by WAFB news cast. During this time we put our football coach, and four of our best senior players in jail.
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The only way they would be able to couch or play in the big game that night was if pledges were made to bail them out. With this event we raised a total of $798.00. Our third event that we hosted was a Best Seat in the House raffle.
In which during our biggest football game of the season against our rivals, Walker High School, we gave the people a chance to purchase a raffle ticket. The raffle tickets were a chance to literally have the best seat in the house.
If your ticket number got pulled then you got to sit on the sidelines of the game in a big comfy couch donated by Ashley furniture, and eat Big Mike’s burgers. This event raised a total of $82.00. The fourth event that Denham Springs High School DECA Chapter held was a “Miracle Minute.” In the week leading up to the “Miracle Minute,” we made morning announcements informing students about the event and facts about Muscular Dystrophy.
In order to motivate students to participate, the class that raised the most money in one minute would receive a pizza party. The teachers were given bags to collect the money in for their class. The minute took place during fourth hour around 10:43 A.M. Before the minute began one of our committee members began speaking over the intercom to the students excited. Once the minute started, the students had exactly 60 seconds to raise as much money as possible. Just like every other year, it was a huge success. We raised a total amount of $526.00.
Our last event we held was our annual powder puff game. Our Powder Puff Game is an event we host every year to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. This is a game in which the girls get a chance to play football, and the boys take their turn cheering them on and being the coaches. We also included a Boy’s Powder Puff Court and included a king. Also, like always this event was a huge success. We raised a total of $2,147.50.
The chairpersons were extremely pleased with the amount that we raised to contribute to the Muscular Dystrophy Association. We raised a grand total of $3,626.50. While knowing that this great amount of money will benefit those children in need, it creates a great feeling of satisfaction and success. The money raised will not only be used to find a cure but to better the lifestyles and opportunities for children who suffer from Muscular Dystrophy.
II. INRODUCTION
A. Historic background of the Muscular Dystrophy Association Muscular dystrophy is a group of disorders that involve muscle weakness and loss of muscle tissue the gets worse over time. Every muscle in your body can be affected. It can also just affect specific groups of muscles. Muscular dystrophy can affect adults, but the more severe forms tend to occur in early childhood.
Symptoms include:
Mental retardation (only present in some types of the condition)
Muscle weakness that slowly gets worse
Delayed development of muscle motor skills
Difficulty using one or more muscle groups
Drooling
Eyelid drooping (ptosis)
Frequent falls
Problem walking (delayed walking )
Scientist have worked for years on trying to find a cure but still have not. The goal is to understand MD and the develop techniques to diagnose, treat, prevent, and ultimately cure the disorder. Physical therapy, braces, and wheel chairs can improve mobility and self-care abilities. Corticosteroids taken by mouth are sometimes prescribed to children to keep them walking for as long as possible. The person should be as active as possible. Complete inactivity (such as bed rest) can make the disease worse.
A physical examination can be done to diagnose if one would have muscular dystrophy and the type they have. A muscle biopsy may be used to confirm the diagnosis. In some cases, a DNA blood test may be all that is needed.
Signs may include:
Curved spine
Joint contractures (clubfoot, claw hand, or others)
Low muscle tome (hypotonic)
There is also a wasting away of the muscles, which may be hard to see because some types of muscular dystrophy cause a build-up of fat and connective tissue the makes the muscle appear larger. This is called pseudohypertrophy.
B. Description of the Local DECA Chapter, School, and Community.
The Denham Springs High School DECA chapter consists of 121 members including tenth, eleventh, and twelfth graders. We also have 26 alumni members and 10 professional members. During our time with DECA we have group meetings, and participate in raising money for MDA. We also plan and organize charitable projects. Mrs. Purvis is our chapter advisor. She makes sure things people are doing what they are supposed to do and she also gives us ideas for projects we can start. We put a lot of hard work into the things we do, so that we can have DECA social event where everyone brings food and drinks and we have a party. When we all work together in our project it sparks new friendships and makes the year with DECA a blast!!
Denham Springs High School has 1,509 students in grades tenth through twelfth. Our school is located on North Range Avenue, which is one of the main roads in Denham Springs. DECA’s main charity is MDA, yet our school raises money for all sorts of charities. All of the money we raise for whatever charity it may be is all due to our student body. They all feel the responsibility to help the community in any way they can. In our school we have plenty of clubs and sports our students can participate in. We have over seventeen clubs here at Denham Springs High. Just some of our sports are the dance and cheer team, the baseball team, basketball team, and the football team. As far as the school spirit we have at Denham Springs High School, I do not think you can get much better.
Denham Springs was founded in 1827 by a man named William Denham. The story behind Denham Springs is in 1827 when William Denham settled on a piece of property on River Road and decided to stay. He discovered a number of mineral springs on his property located on River Road. People flocked from nearby cities where yellow fever was causing many deaths and a health resort was built around the springs. The city was soon named after him. Our community had approximately 10,129 according to the 2012 census. Our community is growing by the dozens every day. Denham Springs is the only city in Livingston Parish that can be called a city.
Some of the attractions in Denham Springs include one of the largest Bass Pros in the country, a historic antique village, a lot of shopping centers, and many restaurants. Not too far down the road we have two malls, a movie theater, Blue Bayou Water Park and Dixie Landon amusement park. Denham Springs is a small but growing community. Most of the residents have lived here their whole lives and it has a special place in all of our hearts
III. CONTURCUTIONS TO A NEEDED COMMUNITY SERVICE OF CHARITY
A. Description and purpose of the project
The Muscular Dystrophy Association is coming closer to finding a cure for the life threatening disease, muscular dystrophy. With proper research and availability of tools, we hope the time will come. The DECA Chapter of Denham Springs High School understands exactly how severe this disease may be. We, therefore, decided to come up with many plans and ideas to help contribute to the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Courtney LaPrairie and Callie Martello were nominated to host and prepare several events while raising money to help find a cure and improve the lifestyles of children who suffer from this disease. These young women started with their goals extremely high. They began planning as early as possible with their DECA advisor, Mrs. Purvis.
Without any hesitation, members of the Denham Springs High School DECA chapter got involved in the many events that took place to raise money. Members helped with the Gatti’s night, the MDA Jail and Bail, the Best Seat in the House, our Miracle Minute, and the annual Powder Puff Game. Gatti’s night was held at the local restaurant in Denham Springs and with every buffet meal that was sold, 10% of the proceeds went to MDA. The MDA Jail and Bail event was at a morning pep rally where four of our senior football player and our football coach got put in “jail” until their bond was paid off to play in the big game that night.
Best Seat in the House was a night at an important football game where students got the chance to buy a raffle ticket to sit on the sidelines and cheer on our football team. The Miracle Minute was a fundraiser in which each class got to compete to raise the most money within one minute. The Powder Puff Game was held at the Denham Springs High School Stadium, where the girls got their chance to play a football game while the boys cheered them on. All of our events provided a chance for everyone to be involved in fighting for Muscular Dystrophy.
So many individuals in our community took a huge part in all projects that we put together. When the residents of Denham Springs found out about our great cause to raise money for MDA, they were more than happy to help. Our community did not only help the Muscular Dystrophy Association, the Muscular Dystrophy Association also helped our community. They helped us come together and form a bond that all communities should have when in need. The Denham Springs DECA chapter was able to educate many individuals about Muscular Dystrophy while learning to work together as a team to overcome differences. After completing these events, our DECA chapter, our high school students, and our community felt a great sense of pride knowing they helped others in need. B. Rational for selecting the community service or charitable project
Each year, the Denham Springs High School DECA chapter discusses the importance of raising money to support muscular dystrophy. Almost every member of our chapter realizes the importance of continuing our tradition of doing our upmost best to help. DECA members, soon, realize how serious and life threatening muscular dystrophy actually is. The three members nominated to lead our DECA chapter in the fight against muscular dystrophy definitely realize the physical devastation of muscular dystrophy. They are extremely dedicated to help fund the research to find a cure for this terrible disease.
After discussing the importance of the charity, the two chairpersons immediately started planning the Power Puff Football Game. This was a football game where the females were able to actually play the game. The males took their turn at cheering the ladies on and coaching them through the plays. The game was held at Denham Springs High School Football Stadium and the cost for admission was five dollars for anyone to attend. We allowed any male or female to sign up to contribute to this outstanding event. The cost was fifteen dollars to register, while five dollars went towards the t-shirts, and the remaining ten dollars went straight to MDA.
The females were broken up into teams by their separate class which would include the seniors, juniors, and sophomores. We allowed the sophomores and juniors to begin playing the first game. The winner of the first game would then challenge the seniors. To make this night ever more memorable and interesting, we included a boy’s Powder Puff Court. The court also featured a Powder Puff King as well. We announced our court and the king before the games began. Also to add to the excitement, we allowed our community to buy raffle tickets at the price of two dollars to win a Louisiana themed gift basket. We announced the winner of the raffle in between the two games.
The Powder Puff Football Game was a tremendous amount of work, but it was well worth it. It allowed participants a chance to get involved in the fight against this horrible disease, Muscular Dystrophy. Many members of our chapter contributed by, helping set up and clean up, selling raffle tickets, making flyers, coaching the teams, and being there just to support our teams. Our parents also contributed by collecting money at the gate. This event helped us inform al the Denham Springs High School students who were involved about muscular dystrophy.
It gave us the chance not only to reach out to the students, but the patents, and the community of Denham Springs. It definitely was well worth every bit of time spent to let everyone get the chance to fight and raise money for a cure for muscular dystrophy. C. Description of the benefits of the project to the chapter and chapter members’ understanding of leadership development, social intelligence and civic consciousness
The two committee heads, Courtney LaPrairie and Callie Martello, of the MDA committee conducted many different fundraisers in hopes of raising money to help find a cure for muscular dystrophy. The first fundraiser we conducted was a Gatti’s pizza night. To prepare for this event announcements were made and flyers were hung around the school. We talked with the owner of a local restaurant called Gatti’s pizza, and he agreed that with every person who brought in one of our flyers, ten percent of their meal cost would go to the Muscular Dystrophy Association. This allowed our community to join in with us in this journey to raise money for MDA and lend a helping hand.
The second event we held was an MDA Jail and Bail. This was only the second time this event has taken place. It took place during a morning pep rally hosted by WAFB. Our DECA chapter was eager to choose who the “jail birds” we going to be. We chose to lock up our head coach, Dru Nettle, and four senior football players: Anthony Bracy, Wes Brown, Barclay Miller, and Cole Spear. We decided to set a bond of different amounts over their heads according to what position they played. The students, faculty, and community were encouraged to donate as much as possible to bail them out! We had the schools phone number on the TV screen for the community to call in. In the end, everyone was bailed out and we raised $798.00.
The third event that we conducted was an event called Best Seat in the House. Our chapter president Autumn Hutchinson gave us this great idea after coming back from DECA’s fall competitive conference. This event including our last home game of the season against one of our biggest rivals in the parish. Students and community members had the opportunity to buy raffles tickets to have a chance to sit on the sidelines of the game in a big comfy couch donated by Ashley Furniture. While they got to sit on the sidelines, they also got to eat a meal of a burger and fries donated by the locally owned Big Mike’s Sports Bar and Grill. Each Ticket was sold for $2 a piece with 41 tickets sold. For the first time hosting this event it was a success and raised us $82.00 toward the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
The fourth fundraiser that was conducted was a “Miracle Minute.” Courtney and Callie met with Mrs. Purvis and Mr. Kelly Jones, the Denham Springs High School Principal, to select the date and time to conduct the “Miracle Minute.” Once the date and time for the “Miracle Minute,” announcements were made to inform faculty members and the student body of the upcoming fundraiser. They also informed the members of Denham Springs High School that would be participating in this fundraiser about muscular dystrophy and encourage them to get involved.
To encourage the student body to get involved the class that raised on average to most money during the one minute would receive a pizza party. On that day as it got close to time to conduct the “Miracle Minute,” a committee member came over the intercom and pumped students up to get them ready for the “Miracle Minute.” He then began the countdown. The students had exactly one minute to raise as much money as possible. The faculty and student body raises a total of $526.00 for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
The last fundraiser the Denham Springs High School DECA chapter conducted was the annual powder puff football game. The game was held in December at the Denham Springs High School football field. This is where the girls play a version of flag football and the guys coach and cheer on the teams. Any student wanting to participate had to pay an entry fee of fifteen dollars. Five dollars went to purchase their team shirts and the remaining ten went to help support MDA. Also, any person that came to watch the games had to pay an entrance fee of five dollars. The teams were divided by grade, and it was up to them to pick their team names and run their own practices.
Two weeks before the game, ballots were passed out during first hour to nominate a boy in their grade to the powder puff court. The senior boy that accumulated the largest number of votes would be crowned powder puff king. Before the games began we announce the reason for the fundraiser and explained what muscular dystrophy is. By doing this we educated members of the importance of raising money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. We also held the powder puff court at that time. After we collected all the money from registration, the entrance fee into the game, and the money from the raffle, the money was counted. The powder puff game raised a total of $2,147.50.
Every single one of the muscular dystrophy projects helped Denham Springs High School’s DECA chapter with different learning and business skills. For example, each member used their leadership skills while working together to put together our Powder Puff Football Game and also while collecting money together during the Miracle minute. They learned to manage money while doing so. Every event made each and every member realize how important it is to stick together in times of need. They also realized that every single individual plays an important part in each fundraiser or event. Helping others also means you are helping yourself. It brings a lot of pride and joy into one’s life.
In addition to leadership skills, our DECA members also practiced their communication and social skills. Each individual communicated with different people during school and during other events. They did this while assisting people in the community at the Powder Puff Football Game. They also communicated by letting people know about the different events coming up ahead to help support the Muscular Dystrophy Association. They also communicated with several individuals when they had questions on what muscular dystrophy is. DECA members were representing the Denham Springs High School DECA chapter. They realized the importance of maturity, social skills, communication, and how to assist others. A sense of civic consciousness evolved as the chapter members continued their efforts to raise money for MDA.
Every single project that took place over the past year helped Denham Springs High School’s DECA chapter in so many great ways. These projects will also help the Muscular Dystrophy Association with research to find a cure for muscular dystrophy. These experiences helped DECA members practice and improve their leadership skills and communication skills while informing more individuals about muscular dystrophy. Many individuals do not know or realize what and how severe muscular dystrophy is. It seems to be our job to let them know. They are so unaware of what kind of devastation this disease actually brings. While conducting these different projects, chapter members and the community became more aware of the effects of muscular dystrophy. They were informed of the disabilities caused by muscular dystrophy.
After learning of MD’s impact on so many lives, people were more than willing to donate to such an amazing cause. A greater sense of civic consciousness and awareness within Denham Springs High School’s DECA chapter and the community was a result of muscular dystrophy fundraisers, projects, and chapter goals this year.
IV. ORGANIZATION AND IMPLEMATION
A. Organizational chart, DECA member involvement, and Jobs
We hosted a Powder Puff football game this year was one of our many fundraisers. With the help of the school coaches, students, and DECA chapter members, it was a huge success. 300 people attended this event. Also, at the game, we raffled off a Louisiana basket which raised $177. The table below expresses the different responsibilities of each person:
Another important fundraiser that DECA member hosted was the “Miracle Minute.” The “Miracle Minute” was made a success by the success by the support form our Denham Springs High School students. It is an event held in the fourth period of the day and allots one minute per classroom to gather as much money as possible to donate to our charity. 61% of the school participated in this event.
B. Description of the Project and Documentation
In order to have a successful project, you must organize plan accordingly. In order to host the Powder Puff Football Game, we needed to get it approved by the administration of Denham Springs High School. Courtney LaPrairie and Callie Martello planned a meeting with the principal and coaches of Denham Springs High to set a date for the event. This allowed us the use the Yellow Jacket Football Stadium in order to play this game. After setting the date, we proceeded to make posters, flyer, and spread the word about the fundraiser.
The chairmen also made daily announcements over the intercom to remind the students and teachers to attend the event. The parents of some of our chaptere members volunteered to work the gate and collect money at the game. During the game, the MDA head helped to announce the boys homecoming court and football teams. After the raffle and the game came to an end, several DECA members helped by counting the money we raised from hosting the game.
The second project, our “Miracle Minute”, also needed to be approved by the principal in order to host the event. Two of our DECA members scheduled an appointment with our principal, Mr. Jones in order to set a date. After gaining approval and setting a date, we made a committee of DECA members to help make flyers, count the money, and to collect bags. Every morning, we had our chairpersons to make an announcement to remind our students. During this event, our DECA members went from class to class collecting all of the money raised. After collecting all of the bags, we then proceeded to count all of the money raised.
C. Impact goal for the beneficiary
Our goal for this year’s profit was $3,000. We raised a total of $3,625.50 from our fundraisers and projects. We feel as though we made a difference and contributed greatly to MDA. We will strive for the same goal next year. With our hard work and the support of others, we feel that we could earn our goal and make a huge differnce in so many lives.
V. Evaluation and Recommendation
A. Evaluation
During our time we have spent working on everything we have done with MDA, we have all learned a lot. We have learned how to work together, be more organized, how to be a leader, and how to help people. All of these skills were tested through this project, some more than others. We all got a little tense at sometimes but we stuck through it strong. In the duration of raising money for MDA we made more people aware of MDA and what it is. Some of the people are, all the students at Denham Springs High School, people that are in our community, and many, many others. We raised a grand total of $3,626.50 with the help fo our school and community.
B. Impact of our project
The impact of our project affects our chapter, everyone in our school, our families who help with all of our projects, our community, and most importantly, the kids that have Muscular Dystrophy. We were affected because we got to see the affects MD has on kids, and we got to see how what we do helps them grow and have happier life and a better self-esteem. Seeing this makes everyone want to push harder to raise more money and find a cure for Muscular Dystrophy. We love knowing that we helped kids with MD get to attend a summer camp with no charge of any kind. It brings a smile to our face and puts warmth in our hearts to know that we helped in such a great way.
Over 5,300 people now know the purpose of MDA, the effects of Muscular Dystrophy, and about the kids who have Muscular Dystrophy. We believe that since so many individuals now know of MDA, more people will want to help, therefore, raise more money, and send more kids to camp.
C. Our Recommendations for Future Projects
Our MDA fundraisers were a huge success and we hope that next year we can raise even more and add to the fun we had raising money and making a difference. We tried new things this year and now we know how to make them better but we have also come up with a few more ideas to raise money such as: A Jambalaya Sale!!! – We will get a few volunteering parents to cook and get the forks and containers to put the jambalaya in. We will sell tickets for $10-15 dollars about five weeks before we actually sell the jambalaya. We will set a date for everyone to have their tickets sold and we will make each person sell 25 tickets. This will raise approximately $4,350 to $20,625 dollars depending on if everyone sells their tickets, how many people we have selling tickets, and how much we sell the tickets for. The date we decide to sell the jambalaya we will set up a tent in front of Wal-Mart, which is on a main road in Denham Springs. We will have our members take shifts selling the food.
If someone does not buy a ticket but stops and wants some we will take their money without a ticket. No one will be turned down. We will have a sign telling them why we are raising money and that it is for MDA! Talent Show!!! – Everyone in high school has a talent and we are giving them a chance to show it. This talent show will be held during school. Our principle is very open to raising money and he would be glad to set a time where we could do this. For the talent show we would have to have tryouts and we would get teachers to judge. Our way of raising money with this is to attend you must pay a three dollar fee to attend. To collect the money we will ask each first hour teacher to collect the students’ money and take their name down. We will pick up the bags and make a master list of who can go.
If someone forgets to pay, they can pay late and still be able to go. No one will be turned down. If they do not pay they will have to stay in class, this assures us everyone will want to go! If we are allowed to do this we will end up make close to $4,000. We all hope we can do all of these to help raise money for MDA. With planning, a few dedicated committees, organization, and hard work, we can make all of these events a success. We are relying on our chapter, our student body, teachers, and community to help make a difference in the lives of kids with muscular dystrophy. We hope to inspire people to help and make a difference on their own. We expect everyone to exceed our expectations, and make the upcoming year an ever larger success then we did this year.
VII. Bibliography
“Muscular Dystrophy”. A. D.A.M Inc. February 16, 2014 < https://health.google.com/health.ref/Muscular+dystrophy>.
“Muscular Dystrophy”. Teen’s Health. February 16, 2014 http://kidshealth.org/teen/diseases_conditions/bones/muscular_dystrophy.html.
“NINDS Muscular Dystrophy Information Page”. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. February 16, 2014 http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/md/md.htm.
Community Service Project Paper. (2016, Sep 13). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/community-service-project-paper-essay
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