By DEVIN WEEKS

Staff Writer

RATHDRUM — Betty Kiefer Elementary fifth-graders have proven to be stellar candy cane salespeople.

In December, Shana Hostetler's students sold $1,000 in candy canes and donated the profits to Inland Northwest Honor Flight during an assembly Friday.

At 25 cents per cane in just one week, that's no small feat for kids new to the sales beat.

"It was a good cause to honor them for serving our country,” said fifth-grader Bradley Schreibeis.

The students were inspired to raise funds for Honor Flight once they learned how important the program is to those who have served their country. They chose this as their Passion Project, something each grade level comes up with to give back to the community.

“It was a really great cause for veterans because it would make them very happy to know that people were raising money for them,” said fifth-grader Emery Benson.

Inland Northwest Honor Flight is a nonprofit that transports local war veterans to Washington, D.C., to see the memorials dedicated to their service and sacrifice. It is completely free to the veterans and supported by the generosity of donors and volunteers.

Hostetler, who organizes the school's Veterans Day assembly and is the daughter and granddaughter of veterans, explained Honor Flight to her students after discovering a touching story on social media shared by retired Army Lt. Col. Doug Dede.

"He had commented that he had just returned from the Honor Flight, and he was so touched and amazed by the welcome home he received at the Spokane airport," Hostetler said. "I decided that his story would be a great one to share with our school. I messaged him and asked if he would be interested in sharing his experience with our students at our assembly. He was honored to be asked. He was full of passion and excitement."

Honor Flight director Tony Lamanna said raising that much money on 25-cent candy canes was "amazing."

"Kids of this generation doing this for veterans means more than you can imagine," he said.