The youngsters of Tawanka Elementary School pulled a virtual George-Washington-Christmas-Eve move to help We Make, Autism at Work, reports Grace Anne Alfiero for the Bensalem Patch. 

Tawanka, in Langhorne, PA, raised money via t-shirt sales, to support We Make, located in Pennington, NJ. The bright blue shirts boldly reminded “Be Kind” and bore the puzzle piece symbol of Autism awareness and acceptance. 

The fundraiser was the brainchild of Shelby Rothman, Tawanka Elementary School’s Autistic Support Teacher. She and her students collaborated to design, produce and sell the t-shirts. They then tallied the proceeds and presented them to Moe Siddiqu, We Make’s Executive Director. 

“Tawanka Elementary students and staff participated in a variety of activities and lessons that promoted autism awareness,” Rothman said. 

One day was “lit up blue,” as staff and students wore the shirts they produced. Lesson plans for the week featured information about autism, its challenges and opportunities. 

Greater-community Tawanka united to contribute more than $1,000. 

When Siddiqu journeyed westward across the river to receive the check and meet the students, he invited them on an out of state field trip — a scant 22 minutes away — when COVID-19 restrictions permit. 

“All of us at We Make are humbled and inspired by this gesture of altruism from the Tawanka school community,” he said. “We will definitely put this donation to good use and hope that some of the graduating students from Tawanka find their way to employment at We Make one day!” 

More on this across-the-river relationship is at the Bensalem Patch.