Riverhead Students Set To Make Quilt For Sandy Hook Elementary Kids

Some of Riverhead's youngest are coming together to find a way to help the children of Sandy Hook Elementary School after tragedy.

, during a gunman's rampage in Newtown, Connecticut -- and Riverhead kids want to help.

According to Riverhead Middle School French teacher Betsy Ruotolo, middle school student Ali Ziegler has come up with an idea to create a quilt for the children of Sandy Hook Elementary School.

"We want to give the students there something cheerful and inspirational to hang in their new school," Ruotolo said. "Our class will be starting it after the break. Amelia Lantz, from our Board of Education, is going to help – her husband is a carpenter and will make the quilt hanger. We would like to put a shout out to anyone who is good with quilting. Ali's grandmother will help us put the quilt together, but we are looking for experienced quilters, who might be willing to help with it."

The quilting will begin after Christmas. Anyone interested in helping with the quilt should call Betsy Ruotolo at the middle school, 631-369-6757.

And that's not the only way Riverhead students and staff have been giving back. Ziegler also made over 40 Christmas cards, in French, for a school that was affected by Hurricane Sandy.

"The cards were so creative, really incredible," Ruotolo said.

The cards were given to Riverhead High School teacher Jennifer Gartung, whose husband works in the Long Beach Middle School, which was heavily damaged by Sandy; the cards will be distributed to families affected by the storm.

Middle school students in Nancy King's and Jan Szczesny's Home and Careers classes also made ornaments for and sent holiday greetings to middle school students and their families at Long Beach Middle School.

Ruotolo said the Long Beach Middle School students were out of their building for over a month after the hurricane. 

"We just want the students and teachers there to know our students are thinking about them," King said.

Ruotolo agreed. "We thought it would be a great place to send a little cheer from the East End."