Students Fund raises $2k in Friday fundraiser

A Friday evening Soups with Santa event raised more than $2,000 for the Student's Fund of Hope.

Part of that money will to to help cover expenses for the family of Azlyn Whittington, a Hope Elementary 2nd grader scheduled to undergo brain surgery today.

Organizers of Friday's event say that they had hoped to raise $2,000 at Friday's event, but the final tally of the free-will donation event was just over $2,211.

Organizers Whitney Budd and Stephanie Long posted on their Facebook page:

"Thank you to everyone who came out and supported us and the children in our community. Your generosity means the world to us and I promise you when we look into these students and families eyes and we are able to help, they are remembering you. They are grateful for you You are changing their lives and helping make our future generations more gracious and giving people because you are setting that ultimate example!"

Azlyn Whittington, the daughter of Brett Whittington and Ramber Rice, is scheduled for the brain surgery Monday morning. She was born with a chiari malformation, a syndrome where the brain is putting pressure on the spinal cord, blocking the flow of spinal fluid. The disorder was discovered by accident after she received a scan for a broken arm earlier this fall.

Although originally scheduled for last week, the surgery had been postponed because Azlyn has been ill.

Editor's Note: Azlyn's father, Rhett, occasionally works with HSJ Online as a graphic artist.

The Student's Fund of Hope was created this fall as a way to aid students and their families who have problems paying their school lunch fees. It has expanded to include school supplies and assistance for emergencies such as the victims as serious car wreck in front of the school this fall.

So far, the fund has held a root beer float event and a movie night, both on the Hope Town Square. The root beer float event raised more than $8,000 and settled all of the lunch accounts in small claims court. The movie night provided enough money to build a ramp so accident victim, Erin Newcomb, can get in and out of her home.