CLEVELAND — It’s back-to-school again and News 5 is teaming up with Meijer to take local educators on a back-to-school shopping spree.
We surprised Renee Cerny last week as the winner of Meijer’s $750 back-to-school shopping spree. Cerny has been teaching for 35 years, with the last four years of her career being spent at St. Rocco Parish School, which she attended as a child herself. Cerny didn’t always want to get into teaching, initially going to school to become a doctor but quickly changed paths when she realized the impact she could have on a child’s life.
“Kids need you. They want to please you and they want to learn. And they need people to help them do that. That was enough for me,” Cerny said. “They need people to love them. They need people to care about them. They need people to value them.”
With more than three decades in the classroom, Cerny knew exactly what she was looking for when she began her spree.
“Last year our school ran out of pencils, so I wanted to make sure we have those,” Cerny said.
Like any seasoned instructor, she came prepared with a list and of course a little backup to do the heavy lifting. Touching base with her team of teachers, Renee made sure everyone got what they needed.
“It’s the joy of giving back to them and having them be excited about having all of these fun things,” Cerny said.
Meijer’s shopping spree comes as supply chain issues have sent prices skyrocketing on nearly everything.
“We sometimes get a lot of things donated, but because of the pandemic and people maybe not working the same, we didn’t get quite as many things as we normally would get,” Cerny said.
In response, their 15% off coupon on school supplies and home office products for all teachers is good through the end of the school year.
“There are so many children who don’t have the supplies and things that they need, and teachers are on a limited budget as well. So we want to make sure that we’re helping to provide a good environment for our future leaders in this world—to have a good educational experience and to take some of the pain out of teachers wallets,” said Meijer Store Director Cassandra Robinson.
It all adds up and Renee is making the most out of every penny, because learning is supposed to be a little fun, right?
"I think kids get excited too. They may not want to tell you, but they are excited," Cerny said.
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