The Panther Creek DECA chapter conducted a campaign that raised awareness for illiteracy and took direct action with local students to help them excel in their reading.  One of the main events was the “Panther Creek Pie Fly,” in which students voted at lunch for their favorite (or least favorite) teacher to be pied in the face at halftime of a basketball game.

The pie fly acted as a fundraiser for First Book, who distributes books to families who cannot afford them. The PC DECA chapter also conducted a Book Drive that collected 941 books to donate to First Book, all from Panther Creek students!  Reading at home is one of most important building blocks to becoming a proficient reader, the books families receive will help many children read and therefore improve their quality of life in the future.

Rake and Read was another campaign by PC DECA designed to help First Book provide books to families. Students raked houses and then used the raked leaves to put together kindling logs. These logs were then sold in bundles of three, for ten dollars per bundle. Both of these fundraisers together raised almost two-thousand dollars.

The third event that DECA hosted was a book drive. During the week of November 3rd-7th, students brought in books to donate to the cause. Over the course of the week, nine hundred and forty-one books were raised. This gave great publicity to the cause. The books were then donated to the Book Harvest Organization, who greatly appreciated the donation. These events were held by the DECA Chapter and got the entire chapter and school involved in the events. It was a great way to raise awareness for the cause.