CORBIN — Nobody told Emma Reeves to do it, but when she heard last month that her school would close in May, the 3rd grader took action.

So did her classmate, Spencer Hays. And in another classroom, 5th grader Brianna York.

They were not the only ones.

Since the students at St. Camillus Academy were told the current school year would be the last, the children there have stepped up to pitch in to “keep the dream alive.”

The kids are doing it on their own.

Some brought piggy banks to the school and took up collections. Others unselfishly thought of the historic school first and took the money they saved to help St. Camillus, instead of spending it on their own birthdays.

Emma, who’s 9-years-old, decided to make something.

“The school had a bake sale and a book sale to help fundraising, and I thought, ‘Hmmm, maybe I should make bracelets, because I got a set to make them. The set was a birthday present one year, and they got it for me because I was feeling ‘crafty,’” Emma said Wednesday afternoon as she proudly displayed some of her homemade bracelets.

To help the school survive for another year, Emma sells the bracelets for $1 each.

To meet the demand, Emma added she recently made four bracelets in one day, because she was in a hurry. And she puts a lot of effort to make her bracelets special to the lucky person who buys them.

“For one thing, they’re beautiful. And they’re colorful. Mostly, I make them in patterns, but most that I make I just mix them up and put bright colors,” Emma pointed out.

One of those she made a bracelet sale to was her dad, Johnny Reeves.

“Those little bracelets are from little beads and they’re very pretty. She was making these little bracelets and I stopped by and after I heard she was making them to help keep St. Camillus open for another year, I bought some. I’m hoping those kids will have a place to go next year. If they close the school, those kids will be very disappointed,” he noted.

In another part of school, another student was thinking of another way to help raise money. It may have started out small in size, but the little container she used for donations has turned into a “Red Bucket Brigade.”

Brianna York recalled it was on a Wednesday — Jan. 16, to be exact — when she and the students were told the news.

“Father Pat (Pastor of St. Williams Church in London) was having mass here in the library. He said it was very sad news. The school is shutting down after this year. Most of the teachers were literally heartbroken. A lot of kids are crying. The next day, my friends and I talked about fundraising for St. Camillus. Lauren (Simons), Melina (Durham) and Hannah (Jawed) were a big help in organizing a fundraiser. The day after that, I was thinking what I could bring to help raise money, so I pretty much brought the first bucket that I saw. It was a red crayon bucket,” said Brianna during an interview Thursday.

Wearing a bright red sweater that might have been as bright as the bucket she brought to class, Brianna talked about the bucket to the school’s principal, Terry Norquist — affectionally known by her students as “Mrs. Terry.”

“When I brought the red bucket to school that morning, ‘Mrs. Terry’ said I should mention the fundraiser during prayer in the library. Hannah and I mentioned it during prayer and Spencer (Hays) mentioned to us that he was going to start a fundraiser. Instead, he put all his money he had in our bucket.”

“It was $56.39,” Spencer replied to his friend.

“The red bucket was passed around, and at the end of the day, my friends and I counted our grand total for the day. It was $349.40, I think,” Brianna noted.

Eight-year-old Spencer did a lot to fill up the bucket Brianna brought in that day. And just over a week ago, he and his older sister Elle decided to come together as one in order to help the school.

“I’ve always liked this school, and I had that change that I had in a bank that counts coins. It has a slot where the coins go in, and a little machine that adds up how much we had. That bank was where the change I had to put in Brianna’s red bucket came from,” Spencer said Thursday.

The idea to help in a bigger way came on the eve of Elle’s 11th birthday.

“My sister’s birthday was coming up, and she used to go to St. Camillus when she was younger. We both decided to forego birthday presents this year. We decided to help the school with the money we raised. We found a cardboard box, and the box was wrapped up by my Aunt Natalie and my grandmother, Nanette. They wrapped the box like a birthday present so no one would steal it. We sat it out at the birthday party, and the box had a little slot at the top where people could put money in it. After the party was over, we counted $309. But my sister said, ‘It annoys me that it’s $309. I want to make the total a nice round figure, so I’ll put in another dollar and make it an even $310,’” added Spencer.

The fundraising efforts aren’t limited to Corbin and the Tri-County area. With the ease and accessibility of the Internet and social media sites, some St. Camillus students like Emma have let others across the nation and the world know about the school’s plight.

“I went on Facebook, saying the school needed money due to financial problems, and for everybody reading my post to send at least one dollar to St. Camillus. That way, we’d have enough money to keep the school open,” Emma said.

Her dad Johnny added, “It’s going to take more than those little bracelets and buckets of money to keep their school, but those little kids are really making an effort. When things get close, a dollar makes a difference.”

Fundraising efforts have increased since school officials were told by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lexington in January that due to operating expenses, St. Camillus would be closing after the current school year ends in May. The school is owned by the Sisters of Divine Providence of Melbourne, Ky., and operated by the diocese.

A group of parents, teachers, board members and friends of St. Camillus have met in recent weeks to discuss ways to keep the school open. Last Tuesday, Martin Cothran, a co-founder of Highlands Latin School in Louisville and senior policy analyst for the Family Foundation of Kentucky, was the guest speaker. At that meeting, Cothran spoke about the concept of using “classical education” at the school, as well as presented options on keeping St. Camillus open, and to answer questions.

During last Tuesday’s meeting, a representative of the Sisters told parents they were willing to lease the buildings for a dollar a year, if the parents can keep the school open this upcoming school year.

Sister Carleen, who came from the convent in northern Kentucky to Corbin to deliver the news, said that night, “We just can’t put out the money to make it happen. If the parents can make this work, we’re willing to do that. We would love to see education continued here.”

So would Brianna, Spencer and Emma.

And, so would “Mrs. Terry.”

“This affects them more than anybody. It’s their lives, and it’s their school. A lot of our kids have been here since they were three years old. A lot of their classmates have also been here since that time. To these kids, this is part of their family. They often ask about how much they’re collected. We actually need a little more than planned. We still need a plan, and which way to go,” said Norquist.

After bringing the red bucket to class and raising money to help St. Camillus, Brianna added, “I feel like it was a great accomplishment, and it made me feel really good about myself, and the school. I want to come back here this fall.”

From kindergarten to 3rd grade, Emma’s been a student at the school. She’s ready to make more bracelets, whatever it takes.

“I’m really hoping right now it will be saved, because right now the school’s my second home. The teachers are there to help you, and my friends are around me. Would I like to be a 4th grader at St. Camillus this fall? Yes. That would be great.”

Before leaving her office to teach a science class last Thursday, Norquist talked about how the students have risen to the occasion in recent weeks. She spoke of their drive, passion and unselfishness to keep their school alive.

And most of all, how the kids have come through.

“It shows their character. They thought it was the right thing to do. We’ve been teaching this for a long time here. Teaching them character, and to care. Right now, they’re at that stage in their lives where they want to solve problems. To them no problem is insurmountable right now. It’s all their own initiative. They’re doing this on their own. It’s their time.”