Students' T-shirt Campaign Expands Beyond North Middle School

It didn’t take long for students’ t-shirt fundraising campaign to catch fire within the walls of , but now that same campaign is catching fire around the state.

Students in Ryan Anderson’s seventh-grade class at North are selling t-shirts with an anti-bullying message to other students, and they are using the profits to raise funds for their classmate Dylan Smith. Dylan has Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and has outgrown the wheelchair he relies on for mobility. The students hope the t-shirt sales will help his family bear the $10,000 cost to replace it.

Anderson’s class set a goal of selling 100 t-shirts with the message “Stand Up For What’s Right Even If You’re Standing Alone.” However, it looks like they will be selling quite a few more.

Since the on Menomonee Falls Patch this week, FOX6 has also aired a story on its newscast. Since then, Anderson said his email inbox has flooded with donations and t-shirt orders from numerous other school districts.

“Teachers from around the state are requesting the shirts and took our total from the 40s to the 80s in one day,” Anderson said. “We’ve even had two people come forward who wanted to donate wheelchairs.”

Teachers from schools in Milwaukee, Greendale, Racine, Kenosha, and Glendale are all offering to sell t-shirts in their own school. In fact, one school in Racine wants to partner with North on the project.

“It’s a much a greater project than we anticipated, but every extra minute spent on this is worth it,” Anderson said.

Now, Anderson says he feels confident that they could eclipse the 500 t-shirt mark, which would raise roughly $2,500 for the Smith family.

The community as a whole has recognized the financial need for Dylan and his family. In addition to Dylan’s wheelchair, the family also needs to purchase a new vehicle and upgrade their home to accommodate him.

A benefit for the Smith family will occur from 1-4 p.m. Feb. 26 at the Quilted Bear in Germantown. The tickets are $10 in advance or $15 at the door. Tickets are available now from any Menomonee Falls High School Student Council member, at the Quilted Bear, or by emailing your number of reservations to esmith1680@wi.rr.com.

For more information, or to make an online donation, visit the Smith Family Benefit Fund online. To order a shirt from the students, send an email to Anderson.