Raising Money for Colombia

The Personal Growth project of grade 8

PGR or Personal Growth is a class that the 6-8 embark on. We learn about respect, empathy, and how to treat others. For the past few months, grade 8 students have been working on many community service projects around the school for their practical aspect of PGR and services of action curriculum. All the money from these fundraisers will go to helping a school in La Paz, Colombia, a small town on the Caribbean side of Colombia, close to the border of Venezuela.

Why this project?

The Escuela San José is a very small elementary school which welcomes the poorest children from the La Paz town in the El César province and migrant children from Venezuela. The students chose this project as Mrs. Ana, the English and PGR teacher for grade 8, has contacts near the school and she will be visiting the school during the summer holidays.

The money that we have raised will be used for health kits, academic supplies, and sun hats for the 2km walk they take everyday for lunch. Additionally, a portion of the money was already sent to the school for construction to update the bathroom facilities. One of the main issues that the school faces is access to water supply. Currently, students are told to bring water from home as there is no running water throughout the school. This was a problem for the children because not only did they have to walk far to the bathrooms, but there were only two toilets for the 150 students.

As previously mentioned, in addition to our fundraising efforts, we aim to provide the children with sun hats that effectively shield their necks during their 2 km walk to and from the nearby school for their school lunches. Furthermore, we strive to supply them and their families with soap and essential hygiene products to take home. We also want to provide academic supplies for the teachers to be able to use in their classrooms to help the learning process of their students. Our goal by the end of this school year is to have enough to give the school a boost into better day to day living.

We are committed to helping those in need

During Ms. Ana’s upcoming visit to Colombia, she will carry a commemorative plaque that bears the engraved names of the school community and the hardworking students who have dedicated themselves to raising funds for the project. These students have shown grit, perseverance, and leadership: all qualities that we embody as an IB school.

A big thanks to Ms. Ana for what an amazing help she has been to all of the students at Cologne international School, and for what she is doing for the students in Colombia. As a student, it has been so encouraging to be able to help others in a way many of us did not know was needed. Lastly, thank you to anyone who has donated! It is truly appreciated and we cannot thank you enough.

Another fundraising event took place on the “Morning of Music and More” on June 3rd. Future fundraising events will be announced on social media accounts. Additionally, there will be flyers and posters put up soon, so stay tuned!