On the Run for Ethiopia School Project!

Saint David's seventh and eighth graders bounded out of 12 East 89th Street today to cheers and high-fives by our youngest, as they kicked off our series of Dollars for Ethiopian Scholars walkathons.

Each year, eighth graders spearhead a school-wide effort to provide educational resources to Ethiopian boys and girls. The initiative began in 2011 with the building of the Saint David's Kalina School in Tigray through Saint David's partnership with Save the Children.

This year, the boys are raising money for a new Saint David's addition to a school in Ala'sa. The project involves construction of a two-room block addition to the current school there, which, when completed, will serve 188 boys and girls in Grades Five and Six. Without the addition, the children would need to travel five miles by foot to get to the next nearest school.

Eighth graders, with Mr. Ryan guiding them, are in charge of organizing and running all of the fundraisers: the basketball and soccer games, tee shirt and ice cream sales, walkathons, and quiz show.

The boys, enthusiastic and deeply invested in this project, recognize the good they are doing by bringing desperately needed educational resources to children who may live far away, but share similar hopes and dreams.

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