Jamestown Middle School Penny Drive raises more than $9,700 for three recipients

Nikki and Brandon Gange, holding daughter Tatum and son Jacoby, were among the three recipients of Jamestown Middle School’s 29th annual Penny Drive, which brought in more than $9,700 for local use and kept the money close to home in Jamestown, the Stutsman County seat.

The school announced the total Wednesday, April 29, and the recipients were pictured with members of the Jamestown Middle School student council executive board, a reminder that the fundraiser is built around student leadership as much as giving. The drive’s proceeds were divided among three recipients, and the event again turned a school tradition into direct help for families and organizations tied to the community.

The Penny Drive has been part of Jamestown Middle School life for nearly three decades, and its staying power speaks to more than nostalgia. It gives students a chance to organize around a common cause while sending money to people who can use it quickly. Last year’s 28th annual drive raised about $11,500 and distributed $3,830 to each of three recipients, one of the stronger totals in the event’s history. This year’s amount was lower, but more than $9,700 still represents a meaningful contribution in a town where local needs often depend on neighborhood-scale fundraising.

That reach is amplified by Jamestown Public Schools, which serves the county seat of Stutsman County through four elementary schools, a middle school, a high school, an alternative learning center and a transitional living program for students with disabilities. In that setting, a school fundraiser is not a side project. It is part of the district’s broader role as a community institution, connecting students, staff and families to people who need help now.

Jamestown Middle School’s approach also gives students a concrete lesson in civic responsibility. The Penny Drive asks them to participate in something that has visible results: money collected in small amounts, counted publicly and passed on to three recipients with local ties. After 29 years, the event remains a practical example of how a middle school can help fill gaps that larger systems do not always reach, one penny at a time.