My name is Kristin Tavernetti and I am the mom of a former Kent student. My daughter, Jackie, attended Bacich and Kent and was fortunate to go on the 8th grade trip to Washington DC. She is currently a junior at Redwood HS.

Put simply, the cost of the DC trip is not funded or sponsored by the school and not every 8th grader can afford to go. Jackie and I noticed this inequity in the lead up to her DC trip and we have been raising money every year since. Whether you have an 8th grader this year or not, please consider giving to this effort in support of our community as a whole.

For Jackie and her peers, seeing the historic sites they had learned about in class was great, but it was also a culmination of her elementary and middle school years. Traveling with 90+ of her friends and peers on planes and buses, in an area that was new to many of them, created lifelong memories.

This year, the trip will cost $3,549 per student.

Since Jackie's 8th grade year we have raised just short of $10,000 through GoFundMe. This type of fundraising has allowed many additional students to go to DC on full or partial scholarships. Every penny of what we have fundraised has been used each year. Wouldn’t it be great if we could replicate this success for Kent’s Class of ‘25?

This year, I will join forces with two current 8th grade families to help spread the word and hopefully raise more money than ever before. Along with the Springfields and the Allbins, we believe this trip should be available to any 8th grader at Kent who wishes to go.

As a community, we have the power to make this possible. Please consider giving what you can to help make the next trip affordable for more Kent 8th graders. 100% of all donations received will go toward funding this specific need. Any excess will be rolled over to next year’s Kent 8th grade trip.

You can also help by spreading the word about this GoFundMe to others in our community who may be interested in helping.

Thank you so much!

Sincerely,

Kristin Tavernetti

Diane Springfield

Alicia Allbin