JCPS students' plan to open free store for needy families brings principal to tears

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Some girls from a Louisville elementary school are trying to change the world with acts of kindness, and their first attempt brought their principal to tears.

Kaliah Martin, a fifth-grader at Greenwood Elementary School, and her friends started a new club this year called Helping Hearts.

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"We want to be the kids who change the world like, the way stuff works," Kaliah said.

Their mission in the club is to offer academic assistance, resources and peer support for students.

"This is something you can't teach," said Jamiera Johnson, principal of Greenwood Elementary School. "It has to come from the heart."

Enter Evelyn Smith: a Conway Middle School student and Greenwood Elementary School graduate who came back to volunteer with an idea for the group's first big service project.

"It's important to me, because I have a lot of things, and some other people don't," Smith said.

Smith's idea was a shop where people can get whatever they need for free. The girls hit up teachers, family members, friends and local churches, gathering gently used and new clothing, hats, shoes, toys and hygiene products.

They came to Johnson with a written proposal. The school leaders got emotional again Thursday remembering their presentation.

"I saw the mission of this school come alive. I'm about to cry right now!" she said. "To see our motto — community, compassion and commitment — come alive through our students ... it's amazing."

Greenwood Elementary School's cafeteria will turn into a pop-up shop on Jan. 20, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, from 12-2 p.m. When that happens, the cafeteria's empty tables will be filled with all that free stuff the students collected for anyone in the community in need.

The school has an enrollment of about 475 students, and many of the kids come from poorer homes. Johnson said the school's student population eligible for free and reduced lunch is 76%.

"It makes me feel like a good person, that I'm helping out others and doing something good," Kaliah said.

Sometimes, it's those lessons from beyond the books that stand the test of time.

The students need more donations, including gently used or new toys, clothes, socks, hats, coats and new hygiene products.

To coordinate a drop-off, call Greenwood Elementary School at 502-485-8260.