‘Ms. Rita’s Last Day of School Giveaway’ slated for May 18

SIKESTON — Sikeston R-6 School District will soon be out of school for summer break, and Sikeston resident Rita Savage intends to host her annual “Ms. Rita’s Last Day of School Giveaway” event this year.

Sikeston’s last day of school for the 2023-2024 school year is Friday, May 10, but “Ms. Rita’s Last Day of School Giveaway” celebration will from 12:07 to 4:07 p.m. May 17.

For years, Savage has hosted a last-day-of-school event for children in the community to come out and have fun while celebrating the start of summer.

According to Savage, there will be a variety of activities for children again this year.

“We will have basketball, ping pong, dancing, prizes to win, tug of war, and all kinds of activities” Savage said. “We will also have lots of food: hamburgers, hot dogs, polish sausage, ribs, chips, treat bags and plenty of drinks for the children.”

According to Savage, there will also be inflatable games and giveaways of socks and bikes.

Savage said one of the new additions to this year’s celebration will be a foam and bubble party. 

“We are excited about the funky foam,” Savage said.

One of Sikeston Department of Public Safety’s firetrucks, an ambulance and a motorcycle club will also present at the event for children to see.

Since 2007, Savage has organized the annual event to provide local children with entertainment, food and prizes, and she has shared her motivation for doing so.

“This is why I put on the Last Day of School Giveaway event: Years ago the Lord spoke to me to do a last-day-of school giveaway and I pondered on it for many years until I decided to finally get on it,” Savage said.

Savage said she and her son, the late Jeromy Hunt, organized the first-ever event. 

“We started out with maybe 10 children,” Savage said. “We had one grill and cooked hot dogs and chips, and we just started out very small. But as time went on, it grew a lot.”

Savage estimated now the event serves approximately 200 people each year.

Every year, Savage said, many community members donate money to help pay for everything needed to make the event possible for the children.

Savage also said she pays for some things out of her own pocket, but she is also very grateful for the community, which makes donations to help put on the event.

Savage said she believes the event is a great gift for the community’s children because it allows them to have fun while also “filling their bellies with good food.”

“Some of the children that come may not have eaten anything all day,” Savage said. “And I believe God is pleased that me and everyone else that volunteers and helps that we are doing this to be a blessing to the children.”