With only the initial funding of $100, Red Bank Elementary School's art program was suffering until SpringHill Suites by Marriott stepped in.
As part of the brand's "Save Art!" initiative, SpringHill Suites Chattanooga Downtown at Cameron Harbor hosted Red Bank Elementary students and family members for an event to benefit the school's art program.
"They have 650-plus students, so $100 doesn't go a long way," said SpringHill Suites Chattanooga Downtown General Manager Dwayne Massengale. "It's a great opportunity to raise some money and get them some art supplies."
Guests enjoyed an evening of live music, including a performance by Red Bank Elementary's choir, refreshments and displays of student art. Eighty percent of the proceeds from a raffle ticket sale are going to nonprofit Fresh Artists, which will buy art supplies for Red Bank Elementary before the end of the semester. The other 20 percent is going to the "Save Art!" program.
"There is lots of research that tells us ... visual arts are so important," said Red Bank Elementary principal Haley Brown. "You never know what's going to hook a student into learning. We have to offer everything, and that art piece is something that was missing."