Posted february 10 2010

District Partners With Village of Colonie to Aid The Victims of Haiti

The South Colonie Central School District partnered with the Village of Colonie in February to assist the people of Haiti in their earthquake recovery efforts.

The district and village teamed with Lorenzo Hodges of Jezreel International, a humanitarian aid organization. Jezreel International agreed to ship and delivery, at their cost, any items that South Colonie and the village collected. Jezreel International is directly connected to Gleaning for the World, a large aid organization, which has staff and support structures on the ground in Haiti.

As a partner in the relief effort, the district asked its school communities to embark upon a two-week “basic needs” drive from February 10-24. Each school had a drop box set up for students, parents and staff to drop off items. Drop boxes were also located at the Colonie Village Hall, Colonie Village Senior Citizens Center and the Village Family Recreation Center.

This initiative was critical to the people of Haiti and, in turn, helped South Colonie students connect with an area of the world that is desperately in need of help.

Helping to kick off the drive at Shaker Road Elementary School were Superintendent Jonathan Buhner, Assistant Superintendent for Instruction Tim Backus, Board of Education President Brian Casey, member David Kiehle and Village of Colonie Mayor Frank Leak.

Surrounded by a room full of fourth graders all bearing donations for the drive, Casey told the children how proud he was of the youngsters and their families to want to help people “who you will never meet.”

“Imagine being in your home and one minute everything is great and two minutes later the only thing you have are the clothes on your back,” Casey said. “You food is gone, your toys are gone and maybe you even lost a loved one like a brother or a sister. That would be horrible, wouldn’t it?”
That’s why he and others started the drive to begin with, he added. “Even though we live thousands of miles away, that’s what community is all about.”

As part of their Character Education studies, South Colonie children learn the true meaning of words like Friendship, Responsibility, Partnership, Cooperation, Kindness and Compassion. “All of those things fit into what we are doing today.” Casey said.

“We’re so lucky to have a home, aren’t we?” Mayor Leak told the students. “Think about what it would feel like to have nothing. I am so proud to see you all here wanting to help. We are going to have a boat load of items to send to Haiti, I can see that.”

Superintendent Buhner told the students that he was talking to a doctor recently who spoke of children “who are your same age” that were being treated for injuries suffered in the Haitian earthquake.

“It’s a very difficult, very sad situation but it’s great that friends like you from across the world want to help out,” Buhner said. “If everyone did just a little, together we could do a lot.”

Some of the items donated to the drive were:

Personal Care Items: tooth brushes, tooth paste, deodorant, soap, shampoo, hand sanitizer, disposable razors. First Aid Items: bandages, emergency kits, medical kits, antibiotic skin cream, vitamins. Baby Care Products: diapers, wipes, formula, baby soap, shampoo. Food Supplies: rice, powdered milk, canned vegetables, canned beans, canned fruit.

Only part of the story ...

The basic needs drive was only one district initiative to help the people of Haiti. Throughout January and February, many schools held individual collections and sent monetary donations to the drive.

Forest Park Elementary School, for example, raised about $1,300 from a collection from the student body and staff for The Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund and Roessleville Elementary School held a “Hats on For Haiti” day. Students purchased coupons permitting them to wear a hat during the school day.

The staff and students at Veeder Elementary School also collected almost $1,800 to purchase nearly two ShelterBoxes for Haitian relief. The cost of a box is $1,000. Other schools also joined in the collection effort learning important lessons on what it means to give back.

Sand Creek students Lauren Prosper and Stephanie Saint Germain, both of whom have family in Haiti that were affected by the earthquake, presented a check to Jezreel International in March as part of the District's Basic Needs Drive. Between the Hats On For Haiti Day and the loose change drive, Sand Creek raised $1110.61 for Haitian relief.