Students of Bonnyville Centralized High School (BCHS) are making an IMPACT.
Through their Influencing My Peers and Community Together (IMPACT) group, students of BCHS are working together to build a school in Kenya.
The five-year plan involves fundraising $20,000 to build the school, before sending two teachers and their families to the small Kenya community of the Masai Mara Desert.
In order to raise the money needed, the group of students has been hosting multiple fundraisers including their latest, a bottle drive.
They’re asking residents who want to skip the line at the bottle depot to donate to their cause.
It’s simple, explained Lesley Anne Etter, teacher at BCHS and coordinator of the trip.
When dropping your recycling off at the bottle depot, instead of getting in line to have them counted and collected, go straight to the overhead doors and let them know you’re donating your recycling to the “Africa School” fundraiser.
It’s important to note, the two teachers and their families will be paying their own way. Any funding collected for the school is going directly towards the cause.
Over the years, Etter and fellow BCHS teacher Julie Hutchinson have been fundraising for one need or another.
This year, they decided it was about time they travelled to one of the communities they’re helping, to get a better understanding of the impact their school is having.
“We decided if the school helped build a school in Kenya, we would privately raise money for our families to go on the trip to see the school being built,” Etter explained.
But they won’t only watch the school take form. They will be rolling up their sleeves and doing their part too, Hutchinson said.
“We will spend about three or four days physically helping build the school itself,” she added.
As a social teacher, Hutchinson is excited about the opportunity to bring back what she learns and share stories with her students.
Emma McLean is a Grade 10 student involved in the IMPACT group.
She said, watching her teachers lead by example is “exciting.”
“When you send the money over, you don’t usually get to see the outcome. Since the teachers are going, I know this is actually going to happen,” expressed McLean. “We get to see the impact we’re having.”
BCHS is working with the program Me to We, an organization that works with schools, families, and communities to shift the focus from “me” thinking to “we” thinking.
The charity works collaboratively with other organizations to build schools, wells, and sell products that make a global impact.
“Kids go from thinking about themselves to more collective-global perspective,” emphasized Etter.
McLean agreed, “I think it’s important for people to think about other families, communities, and countries. We have it really good here.”
During their trip, Hutchinson and Etter will experience life in the community. They will carry water, and work with locals.
Even their children will take part in the day-to-day functions, assisting with beading and other chores around the village.
“Seeing our teachers go to Africa and try to do this is encouraging,” McLean added.
Mickela Tharle, Grade 10 student and IMPACT member, said, “Seeing teachers you know who are going and taking on a new perspective with different kids and interacting and seeing what they do, and just taking a couple of steps in their shoes, is uplifting and encouraging.”
