Samantha Parks is a middle school teach in Baldwin, Pennsylvania. Her enrichment class is making pouches to send to Australia to help the injured and orphaned animals who have fallen victim to the bushfires. What makes this story even cooler is the local tie- she is from our very own Medina, Ohio!
Samanatha and I actually went to high school together. She was a couple grades ahead of me but we were pretty close because of our mutual friend, Vickie. Thanks to that friendship (and marching band), I met Samantha's younger sister, Andrea, who has been one of my closest friends for almost 10 years and will be a bridesmaid in my wedding (that makes me feel old)!
Samantha and Andrea (who works at Disney) also have a younger sister, Daniella, who is in her senior year of college. Their mom owns a dance studio in Medina and even started teaching dance at Baldwin Wallace! Their parents raised all three girls to be kind and caring, which they all are. They're some of the best people you'll ever meet.
The values they were raised with really show through in Samantha's teaching! Not only are her students making these pouches to help the animals, they are also starting a fundraiser so they can raise the money needed to cover the shipping costs. The students seem to really enjoy the project and helping the animals. Way to go, Samantha! You've got a good head on your shoulders and I'm sure your students love having you as their teacher!