The John F. Kennedy School's "Heifer Helpers" hosted a benefit concert in Canton Wednesday night, raising funds for Heifer International. The JFK Xylos, the student xylophone band, brought their musical magic to entertain at the event.

The concert opened with a welcome from Room 24 Teacher Elisa Blanchard and presentations by Room 24 members, who posed questions to the audience and explained the “7M’s of Animal Gifts” from the stage.

Then the Xylos, led by Rebecca Smart, director and music teacher at the JFK, took front and center and entertained with their usual energetic, vibrant, surround-sound music.  The crowd was hard–pressed to sit still.

The audience was also treated to a bake sale of scrumptious treats provided by family members. 

Organized by Room 24, proceeds will go to Heifer International, which is a global nonprofit with a solution to ending hunger and poverty in a sustainable way. Heifer helps empower millions of families to lift them out of poverty and hunger to self-reliance through gifts of livestock, seeds, trees and extensive training.

“The kids were blown away when they read the book Give a Goat, and wanted to do something,” Blanchard explained. “So they started a fund drive and by February they had $32.50. Then they wanted to do more.”