Altamont Student Council Collects Items for Hospital Pediatric Unit

(FROM LEFT, ALTAMONT TEACHER AND STUDENT COUNCIL SPONSOR TERESA LEE, STUDENTS HAYDEN VOELKER, AUSTIN WENDLING AND BROOKE STUCKEMEYER, AND ST. ANTHONY'S DIRECTOR PHILANTHROPY MICHAEL WALL)

The Altamont High School Student Council recently held a collection of items for the Pediatric Unit at HSHS St. Anthony’s Memorial Hospital. The Student Council made it a contest between clubs at the school, which the Band won. The Student Council collected over 380 items including mini hand sanitizer, individual packs of kleenex, coloring books and crayons.

The idea for the collection came from the IASC (Illinois Association of Student Councils), which made collecting items for pediatric patients the State Convention's Service Project.

Teresa Lee, Special Education teacher and Student Council/Senior Class Advisor at Altamont High School, shared, “The Altamont High School Student Council make community service a priority and we really enjoyed this service project.  By contributing items and supplies for pediatric patients, we were able to donate locally to our own hospital. Usually the State Convention's Service Project is a donation to a cause not in our area. We are glad we were able to help out locally this school year.”

Michael Wall, St. Anthony’s Director of Philanthropy, shared the hospital’s appreciation for the donation.  “We are truly grateful to the students of Altamont High School for their donation of items for our pediatric patients,” he said. “It is this spirit of giving that makes Effingham County a wonderful area in which to live.  This generosity allows St. Anthony’s to continue offering our healing ministry to the region, as we have for over 140 years.”

HSHS St. Anthony’s Foundation is the fundraising organization of St. Anthony’s and was established to ensure the continuing growth, stability and future of health care in this region.  For more information about the HSHS St. Anthony’s Foundation, contact Michael Wall, Director of Philanthropy, at (217) 347-1854, or email Michael.Wall@hshs.org, or visit St. Anthony’s Web site at stanthonyshospital.org.  HSHS St. Anthony’s Memorial Hospital is part of the Southern Illinois Division of Hospital Sisters Health System, which also includes HSHS St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in Belleville, HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital in Breese, HSHS Holy Family Hospital in Greenville, and HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital in Highland.