Students at Oak Harbor High School took a break from lunch late Tuesday morning, donned safety glasses, grabbed a sledge hammer and smashed a work van.

It was all planned, because it was a Torch Club fund-raiser.

Students lined up near the totem poles between school buildings and, with their money in hand, paid for a whack at the 1988 Ford Econoline E250 van. One dollar would give an eager student one hit with a sledgehammer. Students who wanted more than a simple hit could get it.

Senior David Squier chipped in $20. That allowed him to smash the van’s windshield. After taking a few swings on the side, he climbed on top of the van to smash out the middle of the windshield. He eventually poked the windshield out from the inside.

“Well look what I got to do to it,” Squier said. “It was sweet.”

If someone wanted to smash a window, they would pay $10. If they wanted to smash a light or a mirror, then they would pay $5.

Fellow senior Cash Parker paid around $10 and broke off the van’s front passenger side quarter panel. After it broke off, Parker held it above his head in victory. He took the quarter panel with him.

The van bash provided a break from students trying to finish work before the end of the school year. Seniors are busy this week taking finals.

The money collected from the van bash went to a good cause. It was an annual fund raiser for the Torch Club, which is a branch of the National Honor Society.

Bobby Ceresola, Torch Club historian, said the money will go toward a senior gift to the school.

“The only reason to make money is to give it to the school,” Ceresola said as she handed students a sledgehammer to use on the van. As of press time, the amount collected wasn’t available yet. A gift in a previous year included braille signs that were placed throughout the school.