School surprise stuns staff
<p>Kelly Huffman, left, and Ann Porter-Brown, staff members at Winton Elementary in Coeur d'Alene, react Thursday to a gift of classroom supplies given to them by the congregation of Heart of the City Church in Coeur d'Alene.</p>
COEUR d'ALENE - Teachers at Winton Elementary in Coeur d'Alene were stunned Thursday by a school supply surprise.
Members of the congregation at Heart of the City Church in Coeur d'Alene decided to take some of the pressure off teachers who spend significant amounts of their own money to buy classroom supplies for their students, and delivered hundreds of items to the Winton teachers.
"I was overwhelmed when I saw the team of 'green shirts' making trip after trip into our building carrying baskets full of school supplies for the staff and students," said Principal Michelle Williams.
Pastor Jonathan Owens - known to most as "Pastor J.O." - said that before Thursday, church members went to the school and asked each teacher if they had a wish list, and they took the lists back to the congregation at the church on the corner of U.S. 95 and Emma Avenue.
"All the folks from the church, lots of people, they just saw all the needs, hundreds of needs, and the people signed up for what they could buy," Owens said. "Our goal was to meet it 100 percent. We got their dream lists filled."
Owens said they've heard that many teachers pull $500 to $1,000 from their own pockets to help their students.
The baskets included personal cards for each Winton staff member, along with their wish list items.
"It was truly a blessing to watch the expressions and reactions from the staff," Williams said. "I was fighting back the tears when I saw how grateful they were for the generous gifts."
Williams said the students "lit up with excitement" also.
"I cannot begin to express my gratitude to the Heart of the City group for the wonderful lunch they provided, the incredible baskets of supplies, and the spirit of community they shared with Winton," Williams said.