On Tuesday Dec. 9 a thoughtful event turned into a fundraiser when David Goodspeed and his advisees served breakfast to the Physical Plant Service (PPS) staff and sold the leftover food to students.
The students sold over three hundred dollars worth of food in twenty minutes according to Goodspeed, who is a science teacher, advisor, and the founder of the annual breakfast. “The funds went directly to Habitat for Humanity,” said Goodspeed.
The Goodspeed advisory intended to use this food to honor the PPS staff and all that they do for the school, but since there was so much extra they jumped on the opportunity to raise money for Habitat. The students made, or bought, eggs, pancakes, waffles, bacon, fruit, doughnuts, muffins, cinnamon rolls, and croissants.
Habitat for Humanity is an organization that partners with the senior class as a part of their class project, where students aim to raise $50,000 in order to build a house for a family that does not have one.
The senior class organizes multiple fundraisers throughout the year in order to make enough money. Some of these fundraisers include the Tom Deluca hypnotism show, selling Santa hats for the Quad Header, and the Winter Carnival.
“It’s great how many fun and exciting fundraisers the seniors have for their Habitat for Humanity project. This most recent one was a surprise to everyone, and the food was great,” said junior Bella Miller when asked about the extra food sold by Goodspeed’s advisory.
While Goodspeed organizes the breakfast, he said it’s the kids who do the work, “It’s all on them. They do all of the setup and cooking.”
This breakfast originated over a decade ago when Goodspeed was discussing social service opportunities with his advisees.
“One of the students brought up how well maintained the school was and we decided we should do something to honor the ‘blue ghosts’ [referring to the PPS blue uniforms and how the PPS staff seem to go unnoticed] that keep the school in such good condition,” said Goodspeed.
According to the school website PPS staff members are “responsible for all district cleaning and maintenance both inside and outside the buildings.”
The PPS staff also plans and budgets the district’s projects, oversees construction, and fixes any environmental issues. These workers are the reason the school stays clean and organized.
There are three shifts of PPS workers throughout the day. One during the usual school day, from around 7 AM to 4 PM. A second shift then comes from 4 PM to midnight. Finally, a third shift is in the building from midnight to 7 AM.
“This breakfast was meant to honor those who work the third and first shifts,” said Goodspeed.
Although this seems like a huge task to take on, Goodspeed said, “the guys got really into it and were excited to honor the staff.” His advisees had to be at school at five in the morning but served breakfast with a smile.
Senior advisee of Goodspeed, David Raynes said, “It was actually a lot of fun. I did have to wake up at four but we made a lot of money and the PPS staff were really appreciative.”
“There isn’t a more deserving group in the school worth honoring than the PPS staff,” said Goodspeed.