Gorham High School’s (GHS) Interact Club recently held a fund- raiser selling t-shirts. The company who provided the shirts is Catalyst for Change, located in Westbrook and run by Kyle Poissonnier, who is from the small town of Smithfield, Maine.
The company focuses on donation, helping different charities each month, with a special focus on ideas such as suicide prevention. The merchandise revolves around the singular idea that being from Maine is not something to loath, but something to cherish.
Photo courtesy of Catalyst for ChangeGorham High School’s Interact Club recently sold t-shirts to help raise money for the new Gorham Backpack Program. Pictured from left to right is Club Advisor Neile Nelson, Aaron Farr, Abbie vanLuling and Catalyst for Change founder Kyle Poissonnier.
One of their most popular designs, while arguably the simplest, is a t-shirt that, in plain white text, says, “Just a kid from Maine.” The Interact Club approached Poissonnier about changing the design to say “Just a Kid from Gorham,” and he accepted.
“Our Club, through this fundraiser, sold 317 t-shirts, which essentially means that after all our expenses are paid, we will have netted about $2,700,” said Neile Nelson, a GHS teacher and the club’s advisor. According to Poissonnier, this was a record in Catalyst for Change’s school program for the most shirts sold.
The Club is donating 50 percent of its earnings to the Gorham Backpack Program, a new program that provides weekend food to students in need.