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DKG Practice/Program

select books of their choice. The Yukon chapter provided gift cards to be placed in gift bags for the
attendees at their “Beginning of the Year Breakfast.” Gift cards were a convenient way to assist teachers
financially because they could select the items they needed most. The total amount donated via gift cards
was $2,185.
Books: Dozens and dozens of books were purchased for students and teachers. At Bodine Elementary
in Oklahoma City, funds were used to help build first-year teachers’ classroom libraries that allowed
children to select a book of their choice during free time. In the eastern part of the state, Gamma Beta
provided more than 200 books for the first graders in Tahlequah. Teachers love their books. It seems the
giving of books is valued by Oklahomans, as the value reported for the books donated was $3,607.
Classroom Materials: Sometimes teachers simply need items for their classrooms. These might be
special ingredients for a science experiment or colored cardstock for Mother’s Day cards. Members in
Oklahoma also stepped up with items to help decorate beginning teachers’ classrooms. I have shopped
at possibly every teacher store in the state and have always found special items that will assist classroom
instruction or possibly ease a day’s work. The total amount donated for materials was $4,228.
Other: This is an interesting, catch-all category—but also perhaps the most heartfelt. Alpha Iota
provided holiday gift baskets for their young educators. Beta Iota created a Shakespeare Scholarship so
that their educators could attend a workshop on the bard. This catch-all category was not shortchanged, as
$2,625 was donated under the “other” title.
As I read the numbers of dollars donated to the members present, helpers poured the bagged Legos
into a clear container. The applause from the audience grew.

Collegial Exchange · 41