North Hills Middle School Seventh-Grader Raises and Donates $1,000 to the North Hills Backpack Initiative
Posted Tuesday, December 9, 2014
While most teenagers her age ask for video games or trendy clothes to celebrate their birthdays, a North Hills Middle School seventh-grader asked her friends and family to help those in need.
For her recent 13th birthday, Halley Koenemund requested her party guests donate funds to support the North Hills Backpack Initiative in lieu of presents for her. She raised more than $500 in donations, and her father Hal Koenemund, owner of Hal’s Bar and Grill on Babcock Boulevard, matched her donation.
In total, the family donated $1,000 to the district-run charity making their donation the largest private donation by an individual garnered in the program’s four-year history.
About the North Hills Backpack Initiative
The program operates on donations and an estimated 71,300 food items will be required this school year for local families in need as 1,980 items are distributed weekly. Approximately 180 North Hills School District families across the district rely upon the program each week for individual care packages and family-size bags of food packed by North Hills students.Donation boxes also are located in every district building and can be accessed during the school day. Suggested donations include single-serving and individually packaged:
- Pudding Cups
- Snack Crackers
- Fruit cups
- Cereals and Oatmeal
- Granola and Cereal Bars
- Hearty Soups
- Canned Pasta Meals
- Boxed Macaroni & Cheese
Monetary donations also are accepted and can be sent to North Hills High School, Attn: Backpack Initiative, 53 Rochester Road, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15229. Make checks payable to North Hills Foundation and include “Backpack Initiative” in the memo line.