Price boy raises money to help Carbon County flood victims


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PRICE — When floodwaters rushed through Carbon County in August, Jaxon Ingram was there to help clean up his grandma's house in Spring Glen.

"Like shoveling out the mud and putting up sandbags and all that stuff," the 8-year-old said, recalling the hours of hard work.

The flood waters returned in September, this time hitting Pillings Trailer Court in Carbonville the hardest. For Jaxon, the images on TV were a call to action.

"I grabbed my piggy bank and I took off out of my room, and I was like, 'Mom, can I buy some stuff or do anything for these people?'" Jaxon said.

When he shook everything out of his piggy bank, though, Jaxon found that he only had "40-something dollars."

It was $47 to be exact. That's a lot of money when you're 8, but even Jaxon knew it wasn't enough to help all the people who lost homes and personal property in the August and September floods.

So the third-grader at Pinnacle Canyon Academy asked for help.

"He came to me with his mom and initially I was very excited about the idea of doing this," said Mark Stuckenschneider, principal for Pinnacle Canyon's elementary students.

Pinnacle Canyon is a charter school where elementary students are required to wear a uniform. Jaxon asked whether kids could ditch their uniforms for a day in exchange for a donation to help flood victims.


I grabbed my piggy bank and I took off out of my room, and I was like, 'Mom, can I buy some stuff or do anything for these people?'

–Jaxon Ingram


"We set a price of a dollar for participating in the 'free dress' activity," Stuckenschneider said. "But a lot of families gave us $10 or $5 or some even $20."

Pinnacle Canyon's high school students contributed, too. Members of the community and Utah State University-Eastern also made donations, bringing in more than $1,400 to buy household supplies and food for as many as 40 families.

The fundraiser also taught Jaxon that one person, no matter their age, can make a difference.

"If one person starts it, then a whole bunch of other people will join," he said.

Jaxon and those who joined him are not the only ones working to help those affected by the floods. The Utah and the Carbon/Emery associations of Realtors have secured a $25,000 grant that provides flood victims with one month's mortgage or rent assistance up to $750.

"(We) saw a great financial need and have established a way to step in and help our friends and neighbors get back on their feet," Carbon/Emery Board of Realtors President Karen Martino-Basso said. "We strongly encourage anyone affected by the flooding to apply for this valuable assistance."

Flood victims can apply for assistance by visiting www.utahrealtors.com/floodrelief. The application deadline is Nov. 15.

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