Crayola launches "Thank A Teacher Day," asks Canadians to share one million thank-yous for teachers

Kicking off on May 8^th, Crayola to visit schools nationwide to thank teachers and encourage Canadians to join them in saying thank you

LINDSAY, ON, May 8, 2018 /CNW/ - Just in time for Crayola's 115^th birthday, the company wants to pay homage to how it started – by celebrating and honouring teachers like never before. Today, Crayola launches "Thank A Teacher Day," an initiative to celebrate and thank teachers across the country for their commitment to students, learning and creativity.

The initiative kicks off with a rallying cry asking Canadians to send thank-you messages for teachers on Crayola.ca/ThankATeacher and on social media, using the hashtag #CrayolaThanks, by sharing personal stories of how teachers have inspired and influenced them.

To kick off its mission of generating one million thank-you messages across Canada and the United States, Crayola Canada employees will visit 35 schools nationwide to hand deliver Crayola gift packages and express their appreciation. Each gift package includes over $250 worth of Crayola supplies and a gift certificate to help fill the gap that teachers spend on supplies out of their own pocket.

"Teachers have been a core part of Crayola's heritage since the early 1900s, and we can't think of a better way to celebrate Crayola's 115^th birthday than paying homage to our legacy and honouring teachers for all that they do," said Margot Somerville, Director, Product Marketing and Communications, Crayola Canada. "At Crayola, we admire the passion and commitment of our nation's teachers in helping young minds grow and unleashing the power of creativity. Today and every day, we commend and celebrate teachers and invite Canadians to join us in saying thank you."

To spur additional participation and help reach its goal of one million thank-yous, Crayola is also announcing a summer contest asking kids to submit handmade thank-you cards for teachers for the chance to win prizes for their teacher, school and family from July 14 to September 7, 2018. A grand prize will be awarded to one winning submission, inclusive of:

• $10,000 classroom makeover for the teacher
• One year supply of Crayola products for the school
• $1,000 scholarship for the student
• $1,000 gift card for both the teacher and school

In addition to the grand prize, Crayola will award eight entrants and their teacher $250 gift cards through a weekly sweepstakes. For more information on "Thank a Teacher Day," visit Crayola.ca/ThankATeacher. To join the conversation and be part of the million thank-yous for teachers, share your tribute on social media with the hashtag #CrayolaThanks.

In 1903, Binney & Smith created the first box of crayons and Alice Binney, a schoolteacher and wife of Edwin Binney, named the new crayons "Crayola." Since then Crayola has been passionate about helping educators raise creatively alive children with colourful curriculums and resources available at CrayolaTeachers.ca to infuse arts into the classroom.

About Crayola
Crayola Canada, based in Lindsay, ON. Is a subsidiary of Crayola LLC.  Crayola LLC, based in Easton, Pa. and a subsidiary of Hallmark Cards, Incorporated, is the worldwide leader in children's creative expression products. Known for the iconic Crayola Crayon first introduced in 1903, the Crayola brand has grown into a portfolio of innovative art tools, crafting activities and creativity toys that offer children innovative new ways to use colour to create everything imaginable. Consumers can find the wide array of Crayola products in the "Crayola Aisle" at all major retailers. For more information visit www.crayola.ca or join the community at www.facebook.com/crayolacanada.

SOURCE Crayola

David Dwyer, Golin for Crayola, [email protected], [phone]