Teachers splurge for students at Boulevard Home Furnishings charity event

KONY radio host Carl Lamar interviews school officials and teachers at 2018 Labor Day sale school donation event, St. George, Utah, Sept. 25, 2018 | Photo by Andrew Pinckney, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — Traditionally, students would place an apple on a teacher’s desk for doing a great job, but today school administrators and teachers from Washington County School District received a generous donation from Boulevard Home Furnishings as part of their annual Labor Day sale event.

Local teachers and school administrators begin shopping with donations from Boulevard Home Furnishings Labor Day sale event, St. George, Utah, Sept. 25, 2018 | Photo by Andrew Pinckney, St. George News

For over 30 years, Boulevard has partnered with local schools to donate a portion of the proceeds from the yearly sale to help schools purchase items they really need, but do not always get traditional funding for. Each year, the donated amount has increased and is nearing a million dollars to date.

Anything in the store was fair game before setting everyone out on their shopping spree, said Tyler Wittwer, director of marketing for Boulevard Home Furnishings. Purchases could be for classroom televisions, student furniture or even a refrigerator for the school break room, but primarily it is for items that enhance the teaching experience of the children.

“We appreciate all that you guys do,” Wittwer said. “We really want to thank you for all that you guys do for the schools and the kids.”

Carl Lamar, radio host from KONY-FM 99.9, hosted a live broadcast to introduce each of the represented schools and bring smiles to the participants. It is an event he has participated in every year.

Local teachers and school administrators begin shopping with donations from Boulevard Home Furnishings Labor Day sale event, St. George, Utah, Sept. 25, 2018 | Photo by Andrew Pinckney, St. George News

What began as a small donation of 14 Hitachi VCRs, at a cost of $371 each, has blossomed into over a $35,000 this year in Washington County alone.

Boulevard Home Furnishings creative director Steve Manwaring said the day is an opportunity to show appreciation to educators for going above and beyond for our children.

“We are kind of taking care of them. They are always taking money out of their pockets and putting it back into the classroom. This is just for them.”

Several factors go into determining how much money will be allocated to each school, including regional sales, school participation during the event and student enrollment numbers.

As a special addition to the program this year, a pancake breakfast was held on Labor Day for all school district members and their families at which Boulevard employees asked the public to nominate 30 deserving teachers to receive their own awards. Participants were also able to spend the day shopping at discounted prices as just another way to say thank you.

Read more: Boulevard Home Furnishings encourages local students to nominate their favorite teacher for a prize

Larry Bergeson, superintendent for Washington County School District, thanked store officials for the long partnership they have developed and said the district appreciates their continued support.

“It’s a big part of what we do in in the school district and it’s very indicative of what we do in Southern Utah, like the spirit of Dixie. It still lives on and we are grateful for the association.”

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2018, all rights reserved.

 

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