Students Giving Back Their Halloween Treats

“It was a Happy Halloween on so many levels,” said Middle School health educator Jodi Maurici. 

It began in November with the Sayville Middle School Students in Maurici’s health classes donating their leftover Halloween candy as a part of Operations Gratitude. By the end of the campaign, 300 pounds of candy were brought to Dr. Efraim Zak at Island Orthodontics in Deer Park, who exchanged it at $1 per pound.

While all that candy will be shipped overseas to our soldiers (thanks to Dr. Zak and Island Orthodontics), the students took it a step further. The  $300 was donated toward research at the Chondroma Foundation. Mrs. Maurici and her students decided on this charity because one of the Middle School students has little brother battling this disease. 

“From a health educator standpoint,” Maurici concluded, “the children didn't consume as much candy as usual; service people will be able to make good use of the treats; and a little boy in our community gets money donated toward research for his illness.  In my book, that's a win-win-win!"