Holiday 'Babysitting Service' Offered Saturday at Copley High

What parent of young children doesn’t need a break during the holiday season in order to get some shopping and wrapping done? Student Council members at are ready to provide that break from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at the school.

Roxanne Rynearson, a six-year CHS teacher and first-year Student Council adviser, said she and more than a dozen high schoolers have planned a host of fun activities for kids attending the “Winter Drop and Shop” event.

The four-hour babysitting service is designed for children ages 5 and up. While there is no fee charged for the service, the event is a fundraiser for Student Council programs and scholarships. Therefore, monetary donations will be appreciated and canned or boxed food donations for the Copley-Fairlawn Kiwanis Hunger Drive will also be accepted.

Parents can drop their children off at the main gym at any time during the four-hour timeframe. There will be plenty of supervised activities to keep little ones busy – from active games in the gym to coloring and other quiet-time activities in the gym balcony. The holiday movie, “The Polar Express,” will be shown in the library or nearby classroom from 2:30 until 4 p.m.

Parents are asked to send a packed lunch for their child, if needed.

Rynearson, a mom, said she will be supervising the event and will personally handle any first-aid-type issues that may crop up. Several of the roughly 15 to 20 student volunteers committed to working that day are certified in CPR.

“We will break (attendees) up into age groups. I can't give you age ranges because it depends on how many show up and what ages they are,” she explained. “Each activity will have its own station. There will be high school students assigned to each station and the younger ones will move around based on their interest and age.”

This is the first year CHS Student Council has hosted such an event. Rynearson said she learned about the concept from other Student Council advisers she met at a Suburban League Student Leadership Conference.

“Other schools do it as a fundraiser, and our (student council) kids are excited about it. I mean, it’s high school kids getting to play with little kids for a few hours,” she said with a laugh.

Rynearson said she has no idea what to expect, attendance-wise, on Saturday. A flier promoting the event was recently sent home with all Copley-Fairlawn elementary-age students and a notice was posted on the district’s website.

“We are hoping for at least 20 kids, but I realize that this is the first year we have tried this. In the future, we will be putting the word out earlier and in a wider variety of ways,” she said.

How much money does the 40-member Student Council hope to raise Saturday?

“We are asking for donations and other advisers mentioned that there is a huge range in the amount that parents will donate. It depends on how much the service is worth to them,” Rynearson said. “I have a 5-year-old at home and I know how difficult it can be to get holiday shopping done, not to mention the time needed to wrap the presents without his watchful eyes!”

Anyone with questions can leave a voicemail message for Rynearson at 330-664-4999, box 527424, or send her an email at Roxanne.Rynearson@copley-fairlawn.org.