A pair of Alabaster fundraisers Jan. 28-29 brought in more than $4,760 to benefit victims of a recent earthquake in Haiti.

Thompson High School’s Student Government Association and the school’s Key Club raised $4,000 during a Jan. 28 “Have a Heart for Haiti” basketball event.

The two student organizations sold $2 paper hearts and $5 T-shirts during a faculty vs. student basketball game and the school’s girls and boys basketball games against Mountain Brook High School.

The faculty team defeated the student team 17-13 in a game marked by “one turnover after another,” according to Key Club sponsor Michelle Holdbrooks.

“We sold out of every T-shirt we had in two hours time,” Holdbrooks said. “The faculty dressed up like our Rowdy Boys and just had a fabulous time cheering for their fellow teachers.

“We had over 1,300 students purchase their $2 Hearts for Haiti tickets,” she Holdbrooks added. “It was a fabulous venue enjoyed by students and teachers alike.”

The school will donate all money raised during the event to the American Red Cross to help the victims of the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti.

Across town, Lisa Ledbetter’s fifth-grade class at Kingwood Christian School also raised “$760 plus change” while selling lemonade, hot chocolate and other items at Alabaster’s Food World Jan. 29.

“What I mean by plus change is that our school is having a coin drive in all the elementary classrooms to donate to Haiti,” Ledbetter said. “We counted all the dollars and quarters we got, and that got us to $760.

“We put all the dimes, nickels and pennies into the coin drive,” Ledbetter added. “I would say we probably had about $30 worth of change.”

Despite rainy weather and freezing temperatures, the fundraiser topped an identical event the same group of students held in 2005 to benefit the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

“It was awesome. People were extremely generous,” Ledbetter said. “Even if they didn’t want to buy anything, they still donated.

“When this group of students did this same thing in 2005, we had a student there who has since moved to another school,” Ledbetter added. “She heard about this fundraiser and came out to help us. We all really enjoyed it.”

All of the money raised during the Jan. 29 event and through the school’s coin drive will be given to a pair of Kingwood Church-sponsored missionaries who will donate the money to the Haiti earthquake relief effort.