Following the January 12 earthquake which devastated Haiti, three Westfield High School seniors started to look at see at what was being done to help the victims and to help rebuild the country.

While the school's French Club quickly organized a fundraiser, the group, consisting of Ryan Krasnoo, Billy Sickles and Ian Mackenzie, started to ask themselves why more wasn't being done in the high school for the Haitian victims. The answer quickly came to them.

"The earthquake was on a Tuesday and by Thursday no one had done anything at WHS," Krasnoo said. "It fell to us to put our brains together and put together a fundraiser."

Quickly the brainstorming session turned to one idea which could be done quickly, Hearts for Haiti. Following the example of other charitable groups, the trio started selling paper hearts for a dollar a piece in the cafeteria at the high school, with the money being earmarked for American Red Cross relief efforts. Each heart sold included the name of the person who bought the heart. The hearts were then put together to form a large paper heart on the wall between the high school's two cafeterias.

In addition to selling the hearts in school, the trio sold paper hearts in front of Bagel Chateau on Sunday, January 17 for two hours. The time in front of the popular Sunday breakfast spot yielded $315 for the fundraiser. All told the hearts brought in $750, with many donating more than the dollar.

The group's fundraising efforts for Haiti have not ended. This week during the high school's midterms, they will be selling candy heart bracelets in the school hallway for a dollar a piece. Many WHS clubs set up fundraising tables in the hallway between the first and second exam periods to sell snacks and breakfast items to raise money for their clubs.

The effort was not just confined to Krasnoo, Sickles and Mackenzie. The group approached Bonnie Underwood Tafelski, the high school's student council advisor, early on and the student council has provided volunteers for the sales effort. WHS Principal Peter Renwick has also been supportive of the efforts, giving it a greenlight when the group approached him.

"It's been very positive," Krasnoo said of high school reaction to the project. "The student council was helping us man tables in the cafeteria. Mr. Renwick was on board from the start and bought a heart. It was about people helping people."

The idea for the hearts came together because the trio felt that the project could then symbolize the feelings of the high school and the entire Westfield community.

"We were brainstorming and thought hearts would be good," Krasnoo said. "It shows who we are. It shows that we as a community and a high school care."

Krasnoo admits that while he, Sickles and Mackenzie have been involved in fundraising projects for other groups over the years, this has been the biggest project they've undertaken. He said they're happy they choose to step up to the plate and put together a fundraiser for Haiti.

"We wanted to do something to help," he said.

Editor's Note: Westfield Patch intern Josh Solomon contributed to this report.