Throughout this year school year, CHCA's K-Prep students worked hard to earn "Spare Change for World Change", benefitting the Restavek Freedom Foundation (RFF). By completing chores in their homes -such as feeding their pets, washing dishes, making their beds, pulling weeds, and taking out the trash - students collected change earned over the course of the year. At the end of the school year, they sorted, counted, and bagged all their coins over the course of a week in preparation for presenting to a special visitor from RFF.
K-Prep teacher Mrs. Cathy Andry has been leading this effort with her students for several years. She shared the following about their visit with RFF and her classroom's partnership with an organization close to her heart:
"What a wonderful visit we had with our dear friend, Mrs. Emily Iddings, from the Restavek Freedom Foundation (RFF). The students escorted Mrs. Iddings to the classroom where they learned on a child’s level, more about the children in Haiti living in 'restavek', which is a term used for modern day child slavery. The students also learned about life for families living in Haiti.
Our students shared so many wonderful 'wonderings' such as how they bathe, cook, and clean without running water in the house or a stove to cook on. We learned a powerful 'why' RFF doesn’t remove children from these homes unless they have to…If RFF removes a child that we help send to school, the adult will simply find another child to serve them, only causing the problem to grow. Instead, the RFF Mrs. Iddings serves with, fights to change the mindset of those the girls and boys live with…and, it’s working!
Mrs. Iddings shared that for the first time in their history, one of the adults took her young restavek girl to the store to purchase her school supplies. This was difficult for our students to understand how something so common to them would be a big accomplishment for a child in Haiti.
Not only did our students break a record with the donations they raised this year, but God increased our funds even further just days later when more donations came in. Our K Prep students surprised Mrs. Iddings with a grand total of $470.53! A huge thanks to our K-Prep parents, who supported our mission; we could not have done it without you!"
In the picture below is the first Freedom Fighters posing with Mrs. Joan Conn, founder and former CHCA parent and grandparent. Mrs. Andry learned about RFF when she taught Joan Conn’s grandson, Andrew Conn, back in 2013. Mrs. Andry has made it her mission to raise funds each year since then, teaching her students the importance of serving and giving back. Since that initial first year, her classes have cumulatively raised enough funds to send 25 Haitian children to school for the very first time in their lives!
Before Mrs. Iddings left their classroom, the children laid hands on the cardboard box filled with their “Spare Change for World Change” and prayed for God to multiply and use their gifts in big ways. Mrs. Andry shared, "I feel that because of all our efforts, our young K-Prep childrens' hearts will forever be filled with compassion for children less fortunate than them. I pray God uses this compassion to make our world a better place and a more loving global community."
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