By: Gail E. Kirkland
Soft-spoken but dynamic and energized, this threesome—Calli Young, Katherine Logan, and Gracie Broughton—embraced an International Baccalaureate school project with impressive enthusiasm and equally impressive success. They chose a real-world problem—leukemia—that they would like to have an impact solving.
“I am so proud of these girls for taking their learning outside of the classroom. At Deer Park, we often read stories or talk about helping others, but through their own choices, these girls have discovered a way to make a difference in the lives of others,” said Mischelle Falloway, the girls’ fifth-grade Social Studies teacher and breast cancer survivor who directed the assignment.
That difference comes via the girls’ TUTU Cure Leukemia project, with a goal of raising $300 to donate to St. Jude’s. Or, to put it more accurately, “We have two different goals: Our goal is $300. Ms. Falloway’s goal is $500,” said Katherine, with the other girls and moms agreeing and laughing in the background. The idea took root in early January after the girls noticed the popularity of tutus at a high school basketball game. From there, the threesome brainstormed how they could make and sell tutus to give a super-sized check to benefit leukemia patients. Although they do not personally know anyone who has had leukemia, they were inspired by Good Morning America’s Robin Roberts and Jennifer Rudd’s recent story in Owensboro Parent Magazine.
“The project is completely student initiated and driven. As a teacher, watching my students take the research, learning, and communication skills that they have been taught the last six years and put them into action has been one of the greatest rewards of the school year,” said Mischelle in regard to the project’s impact.
Speaking of impact, a few local moms and daughters will be attending Taylor Swift’s “The Red Tour” concert April 27 at Lexington’s Rupp Arena. Some have placed orders for red tutus to wear that night, according to Kim Logan, who will be attending the concert with five other moms and their daughters. Kim’s home serves as one of the work and storage centers for the tutu project.
Most of the sales have come by word of mouth, with the girls making the majority of their sales to their friends, neighbors, and relatives. They tried setting up a website, but decided against it because of concerns about public display of contact information and over-reaching what they could realistically produce. After all, these three hard-working, conscientious gals “have quite a bit of homework,” according to Carrie Broughton, who provided her expertise in cutting the tulle and guided the girls in the construction of their first tutu.
YouTube videos provided the primary how-to instruction on making a tutu. The girls watched several videos, with Carrie coming alongside them to assist as needed. “She’s kinda been like the leader. She taught Gracie how to make it, and then she [Gracie] taught us,” Katherine explained. Bouquets were flying all directions, as Carrie added, “We kind of thought through it together.”
From all observation, the project seems to be a perfect fit for these students, who have demonstrated a conscientious commitment to making others’ lives better through their efforts, and their parents, who have provided transportation, encouragement, and a little financial assistance along the way. “We wanted to give 100 percent of the money that we made to St. Jude’s, so they [parents] have kindly donated the tulle, all of the tulle, to us,” said Katherine, with a strong sense of appreciation.
“All tutus are $10. You pick your colors or you can have one solid color…or we have white,” Gracie said. In addition, the tutu closure varies according to size and personal preference. To date, the girls have raised $200, with new tutu orders coming in weekly.
It has truly been a family affair, with even younger brothers, ages 5-8, drawn into the action to “model” on an as-needed basis. Gracie said that she sometimes has to corner her little brother. “Well, he tries to kinda run away… I just make him stand still and he’ll finally let me do it,” she said with a giggle.
But it’s not all work and no play. By her own admission, “We’re three 11-year-old girls; we get distracted—easily!” said Gracie, in regard to some of their work sessions when they didn’t have much to show for their time together.
On one particular occasion, Calli recalled thinking, “Time is up and we didn’t make a tutu. We made zero tutus.”
That’s where parental leadership steps in: “Ms. Young picked us all up [to take us to her house] and said, ‘Go straight downstairs—don’t do anything else. Make some tutus’,” Gracie said.
When one girl is working independently, construction seems to take longer. Teamwork pays the higher dividends, with two girls focused on cutting the strips of tulle and the third girl looping the strips of tulle onto the elastic band. To finish the tutu, the band is either sewn together (by hand) or connected with a bow, Katherine’s specialty, which is hot glued onto the elastic band. So how do you know if you have a great-looking tutu? “If the tutu is fluffy and the edges look even,” said Katherine, with special emphasis on f-l-u-f-f-y.
The added bonus is that “our fifth-grade teachers don’t give us homework on the weekends, so it gives us time to make tutus. It’s not like work; it’s just having fun making these,” Katherine said.
Their admirable work ethic and positive energy are evident in their attitude about payment. “I like it (payment) when we give the tutu to them, because I don’t want to get their money and have it for a really long time and then get their tutu to them,” said Katherine, who keeps an organized record of sales and deliveries. By the way, a really long time is in excess of a week…PRICELESS.