It was a little on the chilly side Friday morning, but a nice coat — plus some cash — both have a way of warming things up.
“Well, heck yeah, we’ll take it,” Anne Lupo said with a laugh. “This is great.”
Lupo is principal of Mylan Park Elementary School. She didn’t realize it, but she had just become part of Burlington tradition that morning.
That’s Burlington, as in the clothing store — known for its coats, among other items — which opened its first West Virginia location Friday in the WestRidge Commons complex.
Anytime a Burlington store opens, anywhere, a school in the area gets a $5,000 outlay as part of its association with AdoptAClassroom.org, a nonprofit based in Minneapolis that has provided cash and other offerings to schools and families since 1998.
Burlington is among the nonprofit’s several corporate sponsors, including HBO, Subaru, Office Depot and StubHub.
AdoptAClassroom.org is also lauded for it donations to schools in areas hit by natural disasters.
That includes schools in New York hit by Hurricane Sandy and others in Oklahoma heavily damaged by tornadoes.
The organization most recently donated to the rebuilding of schools leveled by the wildfires in California.
Lupo, whose school houses 476 students in pre-kindergarten through 5th grade in the Mylan Park complex it’s named for, said the gift will be equally divided among teachers for use in their classrooms next year.
“Really, it’s anything they can come up with to make it warm and inviting,” Lupo said.
“Burlington reached out to us,” she said. “We are thankful that we are so supported in our community. This is exciting.”
Meanwhile, county officials and other planners continue to be excited about the potential and plans of the WestRidge commercial strip, which is connected to the University Town Centre tax increment financing district.
WestRidge is already home to Menards, Bass Pro Shops and other major retailers, with more expected in coming months.
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