College View School students join in Wheel-a-Walk-a-Thon
- Share via
Dozens of students at College View School walked or rolled in their wheelchairs around the campus as part of the school’s 15th annual Wheel-a-Walk-a-Thon, the school PTA’s only and biggest fundraiser of the year.
The school serves about 60 students with severe disabilities and on Wednesday morning they were cheered on by staff and family members as they circled the campus, which was demolished, entirely reconstructed and unveiled in August.
PHOTOS: Students and parents take part in 15th annual fundraiser
All the while, music played, two machines sent bubbles into the air, and staff handed out bags of popcorn.
Lisa Runquist, a Northridge resident, encouraged the kids with her two female standard poodle dogs by her side, Zippy and Jazzy.
Every other week, Runquist brings one of the dogs to interact with the students in class.
“Depending on the kid … sometimes they’ll relate to these dogs where they haven’t related to others. It gives the kids another outlet.”
In several cases, she said students who keep to themselves in class often reach out to give her therapy dogs a hug.
PTA President Azita Fatheree said parents were hopeful the Wheel-a-Walk-a-Thon would raise about $15,000 the PTA could use to send students on field trips to see a play at Theatre West in Hollywood or to visit the California Science Center.
The funds will also provide the PTA with money to host assemblies on campus.
The PTA also raises money for stipends to give to teachers for supplies. In recent years, the PTA has gotten by in spending about $10,000 over the course of 11 months, but more funds would allow for more opportunities, she said.
“Every single dollar that we raise … goes back to our kids,” she said. “Our families are overwhelmed with the care of their children and to ask them to sell chocolates or cookies during the year, it’s not feasible. This is something that is fun for the kids to participate in. It’s just like a jog-a-thon at other schools, except we don’t jog. We roll in our wheelchairs and we walk carefully.”