Helping Hands for Africa
 Teacher, Michelle Wight and Emelie Savard showcase their Me to We spirit in Me to We [Responsible Style] clothing In February, the Helping Hands for Africa group at Pierre Elliott Trudeau Public School in Oshawa, Ontario, decided to take a hands-on approach to learning about fair trade and small businesses in the developing world.
The entire school gathered together to put on their 2nd annual African Village Market Day in support of Free The Children’s Adopt a Village campaign in Sierra Leone.
Here in North America, it can sometimes be easy to take the things we have for granted. If we want a pair of shoes or a cool new outfit, most of us can easily travel to the local mall to pick up any combination of items. We have access to so many incredible items and opportunities that sometimes we forget to ask: where did they come from?
These days, most things in North America are made in bulk by machines or, even worse, they’re imported from developing countries where child labour and other exploitative labour practices are prevalent.
In many rural villages in Africa, however, handmade practices are in full effect. In order to get a better understanding of the value of handmade items, the students at Pierre Elliot Trudeau set up shop stands and sold homemade items to raise money for their Adopt a Village campaign.
 An African village market – right in the school gym! But Pierre Elliott Trudeau students didn’t stop there. They continued their fundraising efforts through “tattoo Tuesdays,” hot dog days, talent shows, raffles, “gum chewing license” sales, lemonade stands, yard sales and by selling their very own Pierre Elliott Trudeau designer water bottles. They even shovelled driveways and donated their paper route or babysitting money to support their peers in Sierra Leone.
When the students at Pierre Elliott Trudeau first decided to support Free The Children in the fall of 2006, they began with the vision of providing alternative income sources to women in developing communities, in order to ensure that their children had the opportunity to go to school instead of becoming child labourers to help their families survive.
Through the consistent efforts of staff members, students and the community, Pierre Elliott Trudeau was able to far surpass their goal, raising more than $16,000 for their projects in Sierra Leone. With these funds they were able to build a school through the Brick by Brick campaign and provide a clean water well through the Clean Water and Sanitation campaign, in addition to empowering the women of their community through alternative income projects.
 Students created African inspired artwork to decorate the hallways Michelle Wight, teacher at Pierre Elliott Trudeau and coordinator of the school’s Adopt a Village campaign, said, “What an amazing journey and opportunity this has been for our school thus far…The dedication and willingness to help others has truly impacted our kids and entire community. It is amazing to see such passion from our youth [and] so many people working together for a common goal.”
The Me to We philosophy is definitely alive at Pierre Elliott Trudeau Public School—the school that keeps on giving!
Together they are the change.
Free The Children is the largest network of children helping children through education in the world, with more than one million youth involved in our innovative education and development programs in 45 countries. Founded by international child rights activist Craig Kielburger, Free The Children has an established track-record of success, with three nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize and partnerships with the United Nations and Oprah’s Angel Network. |
