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Students donate pennies to fund new library and books for Baltimore Public School

Posted at 1:26 PM, Apr 07, 2017
and last updated 2017-04-07 17:47:11-04

Inspiring children with books and teaching them to pay it forward.

The Weinberg Foundation invested millions in Baltimore City Public Schools by renovating their libraries and supplying kids with new books. 

Three years ago they started the Penny Challenge, asking students to donate their pennies to help the next school.

Some students donated their chore money, "Five dollars and seventy cents," third-grader, Charlie said.

Others took what they found on the streets of Baltimore, "half of my penny bank..." third grader William said.

Literally.

"I only did nothing but I found them outside, got them and brought them home and sometimes my mom gave me some," William said.

"For a child to give up half their piggy bank when they would probably spend it on something fun for themselves and donate it to other children, is just an amazing thing for a child to do," Librarian Meredith Simmons at Commodore John Rogers Elementary said.

The school got their brand new library in 2015. Now they're giving the gift of endless possibilities to Francis Scott Key Elementary.
 
"We can go on whole different adventures when we have a good book and we get to learn about things when we have like non fiction books and stuff," Charlie said.
 
Kids at Commodore John Rogers sat on the edge of their seat as their pennies clinked into the bucket below, counting ever higher.
 
After a fitting drum roll, the kids jumped up thrilled to find out they raised the most money out of 9 City Public Schools for Francis Scott Key. They won for the second year in a row.
 
Their prize, bragging rights, and the same amount of money they donated in new books for their own library.
 
Together the students in the 9 schools raised $3,400.
 
"The Weinberg Library project has really enhanced our library, it's open, it's exciting and the kids love coming here to the library everyday because of it," Simmons said.
 
Bringing the excitement to their peers.