When the 7th grade Mandela team members started hearing about the tragic events taking place in Ukraine, they did what Shining Pride Scholars do. They asked questions, researched and sought out answers to their questions, and responded in a powerful way when they understood what was happening.
It all started with a simple question in Social Studies class. “Are we going to talk about what’s going on in Ukraine?” Although it’s a US History class, current events are often covered. Ms. Dumenigo was not originally planning on covering this complex topic, but since her Mandela scholars seemed genuinely interested and also worried about the events, she promised them that she would do some research and prepare a lesson for them. When the lesson was presented, the scholars had so many questions, concerns and feelings of uncertainty that the lesson soon turned into a small unit and a BIG project.
After learning about the historical and political background behind Russia’s attack on Ukraine and seeing how the citizens of Ukraine were being impacted, Ms. Dumenigo introduced them to a video clip and quote from everyone’s favorite neighbor, Mr. Rogers. “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.'”
With that, the Mandela team decided to not only look to helpers, but to become helpers themselves. Together with their teacher, they came up with a Bake Sale which allowed members of the community to order cookies, cupcakes, Napoleons, or flan. The items ordered will be prepared and delivered on Monday.
This simple fundraiser has raised over $657!
Donations were given to Global Giving, a non-profit organization that is providing food, water and shelter to people of Ukraine at this time.
Seventh grader, Nasya Henry, of the Mandela Team, had this to share about her team’s service project. “I will feel so much better and also a sense of relief that we were able to raise a lot of money to help Ukraine because I know they really need it, and the fact that my team and Pride Academy were able to help in some way, makes me feel great”.
We celebrate the scholars of the Mandela team for living our school mission and vision by shaping their world through their philanthropic efforts.
SPECIAL SHOUT OUT TO THE SCHOLARS & PARENTS WHO ARE HELPING WITH ALL THE BAKING:
Colissa Dover & Sharon Dover, Emma Durant & Camilla Turner, Joelle-Simone Lavan & Latoya Baysmore, Sad’e McFadden & Tameeka Branch, Yasir Mohammed & Meryem Eddriouch, Ma’Layah Williams & Denneshia Solomon