DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) — Students at Hillside Bethel Ministries have been raising funds to improve the Decatur Lakeside 9/11 Memorial as a way of giving back to the local community.
“We were recently approached about a project down at the lake, the Decatur lakeside 9/11 memorial, and we were invited to have our students do a fundraiser to work towards that project,” said organizer Kevin Horath who is the Lead Pastor at Hillside Bethel Ministries.
The students went above and beyond what was expected of them. Participants raised over $5,000 to contribute towards the improvement of the memorial. All of the students participated in the fundraiser, but two students stood out. Reyna Perry and Carter Cornell collected the most money, but this wasn't about receiving a prize. The fundraiser had a much deeper meaning to these two students.
“Unfortunately, Reyna’s mom recently passed away, and we really just wanted to celebrate with her on her achievement here just to let her know that we love her and appreciate her, and we also instituted a scholarship in her mom's name.”
Carter was motivated to raise as much money as possible in memory of his father who loved sailing on Lake Decatur. Organizers believe that projects like this are important because they teach students the importance of honoring and remembering those who have made the ultimate sacrifice.
“Sacrifice and remembrance are biblical principles but also principals in society in general. So we wanted to teach our students — even though we weren’t at specific events — there are things we need to know about them, so that we can honor the sacrifices made by so many and remember why those people gave their lives.”
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