Musical event benefits local teachers
Medical Associates of the Shoals hosted a free W.C. Handy Music Festival event July 22, but it wasn’t just music that flowed freely. Teachers benefited from this particular concert – to the tune of free school supplies.
Tabbed “Doctors and Teachers in Harmony,” the concert supplied Colbert, Franklin and Lauderdale teachers with bags of classroom supplies like dry erase markers, flash drives, disinfecting wipes, sticky notes and paper.
One such teacher was Melissa Harrison at Tharptown High School.
“I heard about the concert on Facebook,” Harrison said. “I decided to attend because I work at a rural school where supplies and money are very scarce.”
Supplies were available for the first 1,000 teachers in attendance, with each goody bag valued at just under $25.
“We get some fee money each year to use in our classrooms, but that doesn’t get released until October, so the goodie bags they gave us came in extremely helpful,” said Gary Gunderman, another Tharptown teacher who also attended. “I was proud of these doctors for coming up with a way to bridge and form a bond between teachers and a way to support so many kids and teachers in our communities.”
Harrison agreed.
“I constantly have to buy supplies out of my pocket,” she said, “which gets harder every year. So this was a big help to me and my school. I think it is a wonderful way for the doctors to give back to the community.”
Teachers from nearly every Franklin County and Russellville City school were among the 1,000 teachers to receive free school supplies, including RCS’ Kim Burney.
“I decided to attend the event for three reasons,” Burney said. “First of all, I decided to attend the event because I enjoy the music associated with the Handy Festival. Second, I have lots of teacher friends throughout the Shoals area and thought I might have the opportunity to see a lot of them out – and of course, what teacher doesn’t love free school supplies?”
Burney said she loved the giveaway and how it filled the void between the start of school and the release of the state fee money in October.
“It was meaningful to me as a teacher to have the support and appreciation from the community. We face all kinds of situations in the classroom, and encouragement in any form is always appreciated,” Burney said.
According to Josh Vacik, a physician with Medical Associates of the Shoals, the event was a success on many levels. “It was great to have the opportunity to meet so many of our area educators and express our appreciation for all they do for our children and for our community,” said Vacik. “We sincerely hope the classroom supplies helped to get their school year off to a great start.”
The event, Gunderman added, “was a good opportunity to get many educators together, and the weather was perfect. Teachers spend a lot of time and their own money in their classrooms, and these supplies helped kick off a new year, hopefully well-supplied with necessities.
“We appreciate the doctors and the medical group for their generosity.”
