Published: October 22, 2009 08:59 am      

Keavy school gets gifts from Wal-Mart DC

By Carl Keith Greene / Staff Writer

Nearly 300 Keavy school students and staff stood and cheered Wednesday morning when employees of the Wal-Mart Distribution Center in London presented the school with $500 worth of classroom supplies.

“I really think it’s wonderful. We appreciate Wal-Mart’s support,” said principal Joe Floyd, noting that the company has helped the school with other needs, particularly at Christmas.

The center chose the school for its Teachers’ Reward Program, a service that provides materials in an effort to “help teachers who spend their own money for classroom supplies,” said Teresa Root, training director at the center.

She said employees at the center suggested schools that should be considered in the program and Keavy was selected.

The gifts to the school were announced by Keavy alumna, Angela Murray, who also works at the center.

She told the students that the presentation was special to her not only because she had been a student there, but also because her grandfather, Ivan Wells, had not only served as Keavy’s fourth principal, but also had helped construct the school in the 1950s.

Once principal Floyd was notified of the gift and accepted it, he and Root headed out on a shopping spree.

Among packages of pencils, writing pads, materials containers and other needs stood a 19-inch flat screen television.

The television, Root explained, will be located outside the administrative offices where students, parents and faculty can see announcements, depictions of field trips and other information from the school.

Root said the program is done by not only the distribution centers, but Sam’s Clubs and Wal-Mart retail facilities.

This year, some $4 million was raised for about 40,000 schools across the country.

Keavy has students from kindergarten to fifth grade.

After the presentation in the school’s gymnasium, cupcakes were taken by the Wal-Mart employees to the students’ classrooms.