| Behind every dollar you donate, there’s a story of a child in need whose life has changed forever. |
| Behind every dollar you donate, there’s a story of a child in need whose life has changed forever. |
Every dollar you give means change. It means creating a stronger connection with young people around the world and empowering communities so they can give their children the opportunity to thrive. But it does more than that. It allows you to also ride the wave of social change.
Florida Cherotich is a fun-loving 14-year-old girl who lives in Emori Joi. Like many children in her community, Florida comes from a large family. She shares her small home with her seven brothers and sisters who range from eight to 20 years old. Both of her parents are farmers and, just like her siblings, Florida is expected to help as often as possible.
Thanks to the central school that Free The Children has built in Emori Joi, Florida has access to an education for the first time in her life. While she still helps her parents with the farm work, Florida can now spend most of her time in activities appropriate for children her age.
Today, Florida is very much a happy child, full of life. She likes spending time with friends, reading and helping out on her parents’ farm, which is her favourite thing to do at home. When not studying or doing her chores, Florida enjoys playing basketball and hide-and-go-seek with all her friends. When asked about Free The Children, Florida excitedly talks about how her school and home life has improved thanks to the organization’s projects.
GO Local is a leadership program that mobilizes youth to become agents of change within their local communities. It engages schools in priority neighbourhoods, educating students about social justice and community development issues.
“Halfway across the world, children don’t get presents. I’d rather get a donation. We want to try to help people in third world countries.” That’s why 11-year-old change-maker Brennan Wong joined Celebrate for Change. “My 10th birthday last year was my most memorable so far. I realized that I could turn ordinary birthday parties into something meaningful by asking friends and relatives to donate to Free The Children instead of bringing gifts.” The previous year, Brennan and his sister Shannon raised $1,100 for children in need worldwide.
Educator and mentor Erica Reeves felt that the Free The Children program would give students at Milburn Academy a chance to take their education one step further. She encouraged a small group of sophomores—kids who had never taken part in an extra-curricular activity before—to get involved and right away the program had a significant impact on them.
In the small, rural town of Midland, Texas, Milburn Academy is home to a few hundred at-risk youth who struggled in traditional public schools with broken homes, crime, and teen pregnancy, to name a few. At Milburn, these kids get a second chance thanks to an alternative curriculum and teaching approach. The secrets to the school’s success are smaller class sizes, catering to individual learning styles, and accommodating class schedules.
Erica noted that she sees a direct correlation between the rise in attendance and decline in problematic behaviour of these students as a result of being involved in the Free The Children curriculum.
Perhaps it is because of Erica’s unique approach to the program that her students have been so empowered to change the world. For example, while studying Bolivia, they looked extensively at how child labour impacts a child’s chances of getting an education. The subject resonated with the students, many of whom have worked to support themselves and their families for years.
Erica describes club meetings as “mini-UN meetings” because her students come from such diverse backgrounds. One student named Alyssia is from Mexico and often travels back and forth to visit family members. Erica noticed that Alyssia has found new leadership skills through sharing her experiences with the rest of the club.
Another student named Megan works full time at Subway so that she can help her family financially. She has to plan her class schedule around work and make up some time by doing extra credit online at home. Despite all of this, Megan has been inspired to take action to help others around the world. At work she leaves a small donation can for her customers to drop spare change in and then brings the can to school to add to the club’s fundraising total.
As they continue to move from country to country through Latin America in their social justice curriculum, there is no doubt that these students are changing the lives of others, as well as their own.
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