1-7 ADA lends hand to partner school fun fest
Spc. Jason Stadel
108th ADA Bde. Public Affairs

COURTESY PHOTO
Soldiers and students alike were very competitive during the contests, including the tug-o-war.

---

About 40 Soldiers from 1st Battalion, 7th Air Defense Artillery recently put aside their daily routine to lend support to Nolan Richardson Middle School.

The “No Fear!” battalion is partnered with the school through the Partners in Education program and was asked to help with the inaugural Nolan Richardson Middle School Fun Fest.

The school’s Parent-Teacher Association sponsored the event as a fundraiser. Contests, a bake sale, cotton candy sales and a dunk tank were used to raise money. More than 500 people attended the event, which raised nearly $5,000 for the PTA and other school organizations.

The 1-7 ADA Soldiers served as volunteers. The battalion’s Better Opportunities for Single Service-members representatives were used to find volunteers.

Lt. Col. Brant Dayley, 1-7 ADA battalion commander, is the PTA vice president at Nolan Richardson. he said the event turned out to be a huge success for his battalion and the school.

“The goal was to solicit as many donations [as possible] for the PTA and other clubs, and we did that. The park was always full, and the Soldiers had a good time,” Dayley said.

Nolan Richardson faculty members said the students also had a good time during the event.

“This let the students know that even as adults it’s good to give back to the community,” said Charity Smith, Nolan Richardson military family liaison.

Dayley added it was a unique day for the Soldiers who participated.

“I think the Soldiers had a really good time. They were able to get out and do something different during a duty day. They are positive role models [for the students],” Dayley said.

Tickets were sold for the different events and could be redeemed at any of the contests or games. Dayley said the most popular event of the day was the dunk booth.

“The dunking booth was a huge success, and people were even paying to get dunked,” Dayley said.
Smith added the most popular ticket for the students was the HMMWV rides, “They loved it.”

The Fun Fest was planned early in the school year so the money raised could be used during the current year.
There are many factors that will help keep the relationship going between the school and battalion – not only does Dayley sit on the PTA, 1st Lt. Takeisha Booth, battalion adjutant, is on the Campus Improvement Team. Smith added that 30 to 40 percent of the students are military family members.

Both the school and battalion representatives hope to keep the Fun Fest going as an annual event.

“[we] will do this again next year,” Campus Improvement Team member Carroll Wallace said. She wanted to thank the Soldiers of 1-7 ADA for their role and hoped they would be back.