Can-do program helps school

Connie Pecorilla and Renae Margolin grimaced as movers walked a giant teal box down a trailer ramp Monday afternoon at Fritsch Elementary School.

"It looks like it's going to fall off," Margolin said.

"Don't say that, Renae," Pecorilla said.

The 6-by-6-foot box will be used to collect aluminum and raise money for the school.

It is part of a fundraising program Pecorilla and Margolin started called Cans 4 Kids.

Students and their families, friends, businesses and neighbors are encouraged to donate aluminum cans to raise money for the school as it faces a tight budget.

But as movers pushed and pulled the box marked with a decal of the school's bulldog mascot closer to the ground, Pecorilla backed away from the truck.

"Please, God," Pecorilla said. "This is scary to me."

A few minutes later, however, Pecorilla's husband, Steve, and school custodians got into place on the west side of the school at Bath and Mountain streets without problems.

Pecorilla said the program helps the school, teaches students about recycling and is a no-pressure way to raise money.

"People are about fundraised out," she said.

They're not sure how much money the program will raise, Pecorilla said, but it is a good way for people and businesses to help out during the slow economy.

Margolin said anything that teaches students good recycling habits is worthwhile.

Principal Mary Garey said she hopes to put at least some of the money toward recognizing student achievements.

Teachers encourage recycling at school, she said, but Cans 4 Kids is the first program of its kind there.

She said the school helps the environment by not wasting supplies, and it is easy to realize why Cans 4 Kids will help, too.

"Shut your eyes and picture a landfill," she said.

- Contact reporter Dave Frank at dfrank@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1212.