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SANDY -- More than 135,000 children in Utah live in poverty. Tuesday, hundreds of those children forgot their worries and stepped out on the playground for some good old-fashioned fun.
Students from Crescent View Middle School planned a day of activities for preschoolers in the Salt Lake Head Start program - though it may have been the teenagers who took the most away from the experience.
"We just wanted to come out and help these little guys and maybe clean up for a little bit, and just take them around different activities," said Crescent View 9th grader Gaige Kartchner.
The students played games, made crafts and read books together. About 400 preschool children were able to participate Tuesday.
The Salt Lake Head Start program services roughly 2400 families in Salt Lake and Tooele counties, providing educational services for low income children before they enter kindergarten. Crescent View students got a chance to be part of that educational service.
"It's really fun," said Annika Holmberg, a student. "It's really cool just to see kids have lots of fun, and just the fact that they are in need and we can help. It really kind of makes you feel good."
Head Start, a national program, is required to raise $3.3 million of in-kind donations each year. Today's Day of Service in Sandy contributed $21,000 toward that requirement, in addition to providing music and sports fun for the Head Start participants.
"We just really feel this is important," said Greg Levitt, principal of Crescent View. "This is kind of a national mix-it-up day a little bit, for us to come out and show our kids what service is all about and what they can do for these young people."
"I'm really learning that it's not always the greatest life it can be,' said Kartchner."I'm very thankful that I have a great life. And some of these kids don't have the opportunities that I get to have, but it's really nice getting to help them out for a change."
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