North Hills Middle School students will be selling poppy flowers at next month’s Arts Alive event to raise money for veterans and military families impacted by war.
Poppies were a common sight in Europe following the First World War as they flourished in the soil churned up by the fighting and remain an enduring symbol of remembrance of those who died in combat. Artificial poppies were first sold in Britain in the early 1920s to raise money for the families of fallen servicemen and continue to be sold worldwide.
In class this school year, seventh grade art students created small clay poppy flowers as an extension of their ceramic unit while eighth grade students created polymer clay flower magnets and ceramic poppy pins. Larger poppy flowers and yard stakes were created during club periods and at after-school workshops.
All variations of the poppies will be sold during Arts Alive on May 3 with proceeds benefiting the American Legion Veterans & Children Foundation, which provides financial support for military members, veterans and their families.
Middle school art teachers JoHannah Brawdy and Becky Burdette were joined by students Izzy Sim and Takoda Freyermuth at the April 4 school board meeting to talk about the project. Watch their presentation here. A copy of their presentation can be viewed here.
Arts Alive will be held Friday, May 3, from 5 p.m to 8 p.m. at North Hills High School. Middle school art students are also planning a kids craft table and airbrush tattoo station at the event.