Every December, Mayo High School rallies together for GOFA—Give One For All—to support the Rochester Women’s Shelter. Math teacher Mr. Jacob Johnson has become one of the most active leaders in the effort, and his classroom continues to be a major source of GOFA creativity and energy.
Johnson joined Mayo four years ago. “When I came to Mayo, I kind of wanted to turn over a new leaf and get more involved in stuff like this,” he said. Before that, at JM, he had “did some stuff, but not like I’ve done here.”
His GOFA journey started with the Professor Mayo competition. “It started with Professor Mayo and being seated 10th out of 16 by student government. I’m a very competitive person, and so seeing that, my students and I rallied the forces and really dove in all the way,” Johnson said. “It kind of proved to everyone that we were better than the 10th best in that variety.”
One of his favorite memories remains that first year. “Being rolled in on my wheelie chair while people threw confetti in my face and I waved to the adoring crowd was pretty enjoyable,” he said. At the pep fest, he and his class saw the results of their work. “Realizing… how much money we had raised — over $15,000 just in our class that first year — and just kind of seeing the excitement on my students’ faces when that number was revealed was pretty awesome.”
For Johnson, GOFA is meaningful because of the sense of unity it builds. “It’s kind of the idea that we’re all in it together,” he said. “Everybody finds a way to contribute… bigger or small, in some way, is pretty awesome.”
His students raise money in all kinds of ways. “We’ve kind of crashed so many events that have been happening outside of school,” he said, including orchestra and band concerts. Students bring in ideas like “knocking on doors in the community, …caroling, [making] handmade buttons,” or even selling garage-sale items. Johnson explained, “It’s really turning over every single stone that we possibly can.”
This year brings new plans. “We will have the snack cart,” he confirmed, “and we were also thinking about having a second cart that sort of goes around during the passing time… maybe with some music so that people can hear it coming.” They are also “in the beginning stages of offering things like candy and slushies from machines,” and the popular delivery service will likely return.
“Almost all of it comes from my students,” Johnson said. “I try to facilitate and remove any barriers… but I think it’s really important that the students own the efforts.”
The class is aiming high this year. “It’s a very aggressive goal to try to raise $20,000,” he said. Two years ago they raised $15,000, and last year about $9,000. “$20,000 is mind-blowing… I don’t know how they’re going to do it, but they seem to think they can.”
What keeps him coming back is the energy of it all. “Seeing kids, you know, looking in the windows… knocking on the door, ‘Do you have anything on the cart?’” he said. “It’s really a three-week sprint, and I really like the chaos. It kind of just boosts us off into Christmas break.”
In the end, Johnson hopes students understand that everyone has something to offer. “GOFA is really what everybody has a part to contribute,” he said. “Money, time, talents… find something. Because when we all do it, it gets better.”
