February 27, 2007:
FOREST PARK - Giving to those less fortunate is a noble cause, and students at Lakeside Elementary have taken that cause to an extreme that even surprised their teachers.
The fourth-graders at Lakeside Elementary School were the first to join All as One's Children Caring About Children project, an effort that raises money to help the orphans of Sierra Leone, an African country torn apart by conflict over diamonds.
Fourth-grade teacher Susan Drummond's class began the project right before the school's holiday break and set a goal of a dollar per day for the remaining seven months of the year. To Drummond's surprise, the class met their seven-month goal of $210 in less than a week.
"They've just been completely overwhelming," Drummond said.
Lois Minton's fourth-grade class joined the cause, and the two classes have combined to raise more than $550.
"We want them to have as much as they can get," said fourth-grader Alex Huckleberry.
Now Drummond said the goal is just to collect as much as possible. She and Minton are looking to transform the fourth grade's humanitarian work into a school-wide fundraising effort, which, if successful, would likely dwarf the two classes' already lofty accomplishments.
If another school or class would be interested in joining the Children Caring About Children project, they can visit www.allasone.org/ccac.php or e-mail schools@allasone.org for more information.
rdowdy@communitypress.com
