AT&T Pioneers help out 300 local students

Approximately 300 Elgin Area School District U-46 students will be a little warmer this holiday season thanks to the generosity of AT&T Pioneers, a group of volunteers consisting of current, former, and retired AT&T employees.

Students took part in the annual AT&T Pioneers "All Children Shall Have Shoes" community project Thursday at Shoe Carnival in South Elgin where they spent 45 minutes picking out a pair of shoes, socks, gloves, and a hat with the help of an AT&T Pioneer volunteer. After the students made their selections and went through the checkout lanes, they had their pictures taken with Santa. The students attend Coleman, Garfield, Highland, Hillcrest, McKinley, and Ronald D. O'Neal elementary schools.

In the early 1960s, a former Illinois Bell plant technician and his co-workers started a project to provide local schoolchildren from families in need with a new pair of shoes. It quickly turned into an annual event and was adopted by the Pioneers - current, former and retired AT&T employees - who work with local school districts to identify and support children in need.