DEXTER – Like most children, Cory Fanjoy, 10, and Nathan Wyman, 9, of Dexter would place their small hands over their hearts and recite the Pledge of Allegiance in class because it was expected of them.

Today, the Dexter Middle School pupils do it because they are eager to show their patriotism and support for their country in the wake of the terrorist attacks that stunned the nation a year ago.

Like the rest of the country, the young men mourned the loved ones lost in the Sept. 11 attacks but their support did not end there. The pair rallied their classmates into raising funds for the families of the victims in New York City. More than $300 was raised and forwarded to the American Red Cross.

“I just knew any person can make a difference,” said Fanjoy. “I knew those families were going through a lot and I just wanted to raise money for them.”

Fanjoy’s suggestion that a collection be taken for the families was embraced by Wyman and a few other friends.

“I felt sorry for all the people that died in it,” Wyman said of the terrorist attacks. Outside of school, the young man donned a junior firefighter’s uniform and worked beside adults at a car wash to raise $2,600 for New York City’s Engine Company 6. Wyman held a boot for the collections and helped wash tires, which was as high as he could reach on the vehicles.

The lesson Wyman learned from the terrorist attacks was that “you shouldn’t take stuff” for granted.

“I learned that things can happen just like that,” said Fanjoy. “And I learned that when things happen like that we can give them a little bit of hope.”