Haile Middle students band together for charity

Although John Mancini never had been in a Corvette before, he quickly adjusted, posing for a photo with his fellow Carlos E. Haile Middle School eighth-graders.

"This car is pretty nice," Mancini said, smiling and running his hands over the steering wheel.

The Gulf Coast Corvette Club brought nine Corvettes to campus Dec. 2 for Haile Middle band students to enjoy as a reward for their work in collecting items for Toys for Tots.

Haile's band students collected more than 300 toys, including dolls, plastic race cars and trains, for the program, which collects and provides gifts to more than 4,000 children in the county each year.

Donations were stored in the band room.

It was the first time the school partnered with Marine Corps League Desoto Detachment No. 588 to collect for the nationwide program.

Sitting in a Corvette was just a perk. Sixth-grader Carlie Phelps enjoyed trying out the driver's seat of a yellow Corvette. 

But she had her mind on something else as well.

"It makes me sad to think of kids not having anything to open on Christmas," Phelps said. "What we did helps make other kids happy, and that makes me happy."

Marine detachment group members will distribute the toys to not-for-profits, which in turn deliver them to children.

"The need for toys is great," Marine Corps veteran Dave Klein told the band students. "Christmas morning there still will be kids who wake up with no toys under the tree. We're helping change that. You are helping change that.

"It's important to instill a sense of giving at a young age. Toys for Tots makes kids realize not a lot of children are as fortunate as they are."

Each December, Haile promotes "Random Acts of Kindness" activities to prompt students to think about giving during the holiday season.

"This is what the month is all about, what giving is all about," Principal Sharon Scarbrough said.