The drama club at Panther Valley Junior-Senior High School has been performing an annual show for years.

But with no microphones to wear during performances, it can sometimes be difficult to project their voices throughout the school’s auditorium.

A parent noticed the problem during last year’s performance and pledged to help them raise money for new equipment for the upcoming year.

“Last year, they put on a really nice show and the kids did really well — but if you weren’t sitting in the first two rows you didn’t hear anything they said, because we have no mics,” Colleen Bauer said.

None of the school’s other performing groups — the band, chorus or Harmony Scholars — use the kind of mics which are needed for a drama club play.

Bauer started an online fundraiser with the goal of raising $500 to rent microphones, if not buy them.

The fundraiser has raised nearly $300 in less than a week.

About 15 students participate in the drama club. They are currently preparing for a performance of “The Lead Rings on the Merry Go-Round,” a murder mystery.

The drama club does not receive any funding from the school. Students assemble their own costumes. But the club provides a constructive activity, which boosts the confidence of the performers.

Bauer’s daughter Reilly has autism. Bauer said that while Reilly is reserved in normal social situations, performing in drama club gives her the confidence to speak in front of groups.

“It’s a different kind of confidence than getting up in front of your classroom and giving a speech,” Bauer said.

Bauer said she hopes that by improving the production value of the show, it will lead to more ticket sales. That in turn will enable them to invest even more in the production in the coming years.

“I just really feel like they need to be heard, and it would make a tremendous difference,” she said.

In addition to the online fundraiser, donations can be sent to Panther Valley Junior Senior High School, 912 Coal Region Way, Lansford, PA 18232, addressed to the drama club.

For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/donate/818965811901471.