Teacher raises $100K and does something truly special for ALL 650 pupils in her school

PepperHill Elementary in North Charleston, South Carolina was the scene of jubilation when their teacher acquired bikes for every child in the school.

Teacher Katie Blomquist raised almost $100,000 after setting up a GoFundMe page titled ‘Every Kid Deserves a Bike!’ on behalf of the 650 students in her school.

"Every child deserves to have a bike, but, unfortunately, not every child has the opportunity to receive one," Katie explained on the donation website.

PepperHill Elementary is deemed a ‘title 1’ school which means it has a low income, high poverty rate.

Seeing the daily struggles students have to deal with, the teacher continued: "Over the years, after talking with students, I have come to the realisation many have never ridden a bike nor do they have the means to own a bike, especially one that is new."

Katie came up with the idea to raise funds after a student had wanted a bike that his family couldn’t afford.

"I began to envision how each student’s quality of life could improve if they had more freedom to ride around their neighbourhoods."

Katie’s initial goal was to provide each student with a new bike, helmet and bike lock for Christmas, however, just shy of donations and a mix up with shipping, their presents only arrived recently. 

Donations came in over a six month spell and 925 people contributed to the cause, with two donators giving $1,000 each.

The campaign has now ended but Katie has set up a non-profit ‘Going Places’ to continue her work on a higher level.

What an incredible teacher!