Carleton Place, Ont. school is top fundraiser in Canada for 'Jump Rope for Heart'
St. Gregory's Catholic Elementary School in Carleton Place, Ont. is the top fundraising school in Canada for the Heart and Stroke Foundation's Jump Rope for Heart campaign this year.
Ending this coming Friday, St. Gregory has raised more than $23,000 in the past month for Heart and Stroke.
"That is incredible," says Stephanie Brownlee, a Grade 2 teacher at St. Gregory and the school's organizer of Jump Rope for Heart.
"We're so thankful to have such a generous community. We never expected that; we were just doing it for the fun of getting outside and doing some physical activity."
This year's event is the first in-person jump rope event in three years due to the pandemic, and the teacher's at this kindergarten to Grade 3 school were surprised at how well the students jumped right in.
"Some knew how to skip, some didn't know how to skip," Brownlee tells CTV News. "So we've been watching videos on learning to skip, we used hula hoops to start; we come outside and practiced every day."
A motivating factor in the school's success may be the personal connection to Heart and Stroke this year.
"I told the kids my story," says St. Gregory principal Paula Perrault, "which is that my husband had a stroke a year ago, so it's kind of personal and many of them identified who they're jumping for. Some of them are jumping for my husband Bob and some are jumping for family members, grandmas, grandpas, aunts and uncles."
"They knew that we were helping people directly," adds Brownlee. "It wasn't just, we're doing something that they couldn't see."
The school is made up of just under 500 students, all kindergarten to Grade 3, making the feat being top in the country for fundraising even more impressive.
"It's great that the kids are highlighted for what they've done and they've put in a lot of effort into learning how to jump," says Perrault. "And they've made that personal connection that they're jumping for somebody."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
'It’s discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
RCMP uncovers alleged plot by 2 Montreal men to illegally sell drones, equipment to Libya
The RCMP says it has uncovered a plot by two men in Montreal to sell Chinese drones and military equipment to Libya illegally.
Government agrees to US$138.7M settlement over FBI's botching of Larry Nassar assault allegations
The U.S. Justice Department announced a US$138.7 million settlement Tuesday with more than 100 people who accused the FBI of grossly mishandling allegations of sexual assault against Larry Nassar in 2015 and 2016, a critical time gap that allowed the sports doctor to continue to prey on victims before his arrest.
Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko won't play in Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Man wanted in connection with deadly shooting in Toronto tops list of most wanted fugitives in Canada
A 35-year-old man wanted in connection with the murder of Toronto resident 29-year-old Sharmar Powell-Flowers nine months ago has topped the list of the BOLO program’s 25 most wanted fugitives across Canada, police announced Tuesday.
Doctors ask Liberal government to reconsider capital gains tax change
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.