“Service learning” has become a critical part of preparing students for their life in the world.

Under the guidance of one of our teachers, students select projects and plan fundraisers. Each is designed to engage the students directly, in raising funds and serving others.

For example, during a recent meeting, the members voted that Riley Hospital for Children would receive Chapel offerings in the 4th quarter.

St. John’s Lutheran School will also be “Ringing the Bell” on behalf of the Salvation Army’s Red Kettle Campaign.  Come see the students on Wednesday, December 6, from 4 to 6 pm at the Walmart Store in LaPorte.  

History of the Red Kettle                                                                           

In 1891, Salvation Army Captain Joseph McFee was distraught because so many poor individuals in San Francisco were going hungry. During the holiday season, he resolved to provide a free Christmas dinner for the destitute and poverty-stricken. He only had one major hurdle to overcome — funding the project.

Where would the money come from, he wondered. He lay awake at night, worrying, thinking, and praying about how he could find the funds to fulfill his commitment to feeding 1,000 of the city’s poorest individuals on Christmas Day. As he pondered the issue, his thoughts drifted back to his sailor days in Liverpool, England. He remembered how at Stage Landing, where the boats came in, there was a large, iron kettle called “Simpson’s Pot” into which passers-by tossed a coin or two to help the poor.

The next day Captain McFee placed a similar pot at the Oakland Ferry Landing at the foot of Market Street. Beside the pot, he placed a sign that read, “Keep the Pot Boiling.” He soon had the money to see that the needy people were properly fed at Christmas.