Harper Students to Get Help from UE on Community Service Project

Monday, Oct. 19 and Friday, Oct. 23

2 – 3 p.m.

Harper Elementary School, 21 S. Alvord Blvd. 

Third grade students in Autumn Neigbors’ class at Harper Elementary School have been working on a project that will help students half a world away – in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. On Monday, Oct. 19 and Friday, Oct. 23, the third grade students will get some help from students from the University of Southern Indiana.

The third graders have a theme this year of, “Be the Change,” based on the quote by Mahatma Ghandi, “Be the change you wish to see in this world.”  As a part of that theme Neighbors decided to partner with a school in Tegucigalpa, Honduras that works with kids who live and work in the garbage dump.  AFE, the school, is trying to break the cycle of poverty in children’s lives by providing them with an education and striving to meet their holistic needs.  (Currently 40% of the students who graduate from AFE do not have to return to the garbage dump, but are able to find more stable jobs elsewhere.)

To help, Harper students are working to fill a total of 18 backpacks to send to children who attend AFE. The backpacks will be given to students at AFE over Thanksgiving and will include items brought in by students including old clothes or shoes, Spanish books, school supplies, etc.

Students from the University of Evansville heard about the project and wanted to help. So, on Monday and Friday UE students will travel to Harper to help the third graders write a letter that will be included with each backpack and to help translate the letter into Spanish.

Neighbors will personally be delivering the backpacks over Thanksgiving break and is planning on creating a slideshow video of the entire process, including her visit, upon her return.