VINELAND — Stu­dents and staff at Mennies Elementary School have raised more than $2,000 in a joint fundraising venture with Cumberland County College to help the victims of the devastating earthquake in Haiti.

According to Bill Hart­man, a Mennies guidance counselor, on Feb. 24, CCC officials and the Mennies family attended a joint assembly to celebrate the fundraising success and to learn more about the island nation. In attendance were members of the Cum­berland County College administrative team and students.

The assembly featured a presentation by Suzanne Buchanan, who has spent several years working in Haiti prior to the earthquake. She shared information about the people, the culture and the landscape of Haiti.

“In our own small way, we also want to take the time to applaud our students and staffs for their compassion and willingness to share their resources with a people and a nation that have been broken by the forces of nature,” said Hartman.

Two days after the Jan. 12 earthquake, Mennies School and Cumberland County College started a joint partnership venture to raise awareness and to raise cash donations for the survivors in Port-au-Prince as well as other parts of the country of Haiti. The college organized a February campaign on its campus for faculty and students titled Wear Red and Give Green to encourage members and guests on campus to donate cash for Haiti Relief.

Hartman says the money raised by Mennies students and staff will be presented to several agencies providing direct service to the people of Haiti. The school's donation will be added to funds received through other efforts in the district and distributed to those agencies in April.

The school also joined fundraising efforts with the Susquehanna Bank branch at Lincoln and Dante. On Feb. 5, the staff at Susquehanna held a bake sale throughout the day to raise donations for Haiti. The manager has forwarded the proceeds from that sale to Lisa Arena, Mennies principal, to be added to the school's donation.

“We are grateful to the staff at Susquehanna Bank for their interest in collaborating with our school to help a very poor country in crisis,” says Hartman.