by TaLeiza Calloway
news@thenewsleaders.com
About 30 area vendors exhibited work and presented products during the Cinco de Mayo Extravaganza at El Paso Bar and Grill in St. Joseph. The first-ever event was held to raise money for Stride Academy, a
K-8 public charter school in St. Cloud. They have two sites, one is a building that houses grades K-5 and another holds grades 6-8 in a middle-school building.
St. Joseph resident Jodi Rajkowski wanted to raise money for the school as a way to thank its staff for the support she and her two sons, Blake and Chase, have recieved. Rajkowski lost her husband, Ron, in an auto accident in October. Proceeds from the event are slated to fund technology and the school’s Legacy Fund. The fund is devoted to developing leaders and character education.