“I’m thinking, ‘What could I do?’” she said, adding that she scoured the internet for fresh ideas. “Why not jump out of a plane?”
As part of the annual fundraiser, Fairborn Intermediate students sell raffle tickets to raise money for student field trips. The money may also go towards supplies and classroom-specific activities. Community members and local businesses donate raffle prizes, and kids who sell the greatest number of tickets get additional prizes.
The students met their fundraising goal of $25,000, and Gendreau made arrangements with Skydive Greene County in Xenia, funding the experience herself.
The kicker: Gendreau is afraid of heights.
“The kids were saying, ‘You’ll be a chicken,’” she said. “I’m scared to death of heights. But I wanted to show the kids that even though you’re scared of something, you can go outside your box and give something new a try.”
Gendreau said she wasn’t too nervous about the experience until the door of the plane opened.
“It’s like a little sardine can,” she said.
The experience was professionally recorded and shared with students during announcements.
“The one thing I liked the best was seeing the kids and parents out there,” she said. “It was a little scary, but the place did a really good job of keeping everyone at ease.”
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