UNICEF club fundraises to help end human trafficking

Lauren Kirk | Guest Writer

Freshmen Jada Venson, Elena Wigglesworth, Alexis Shugars, and Olivia DeWan sell baked goods at Giant on February 23. The club raised over $500 to send to UNICEF. Photo: Stephanie DeWan

Students have come together this year to start the first UNICEF club at our school, fundraising to lower the amount of human trafficking and poverty worldwide, and to help children in need around the world. Around 5.5 million victims of human trafficking are under the age of 18, and one-fifth of all identified trafficking victims are children.

Freshman Olivia DeWan, president of the club, learned about it from a family member, and was instantly interested. “LCHS UNICEF club has definitely made my freshman year more interesting,” DeWan said. “It opened my eyes to huge problems that children face around the world. It made me more aware of how others are suffering and that we can actually do stuff to help them.”

Some of those problems are poverty, child marriage, a lack or shortage of vaccines or medicine that they need,  and horrible living situations. According to DeWan, UNICEF helps children outside of the United States, and the money they raise goes to places where kids are in need. “We fundraise, and all that money gets sent back to UNICEF and they disperse it out to children anywhere. It goes to whatever UNICEF thinks children need help with most, so it could be education, food, clothing, medicine, or anything,” she said.

DeWan had to register with the UNICEF organization before starting the club, and after she was approved, she was able to gather friends and a sponsor to start it. The sponsor for the club is spanish teacher Bryan Boeing. According to DeWan, many of her friends wanted to help. Freshmen Jada Venson and Alexis Shugars immediately stepped up, and they hold officer positions.

DeWan was inspired to make a difference. “I have always wanted to help people, but I wasn’t sure how to,” DeWan says. “That’s why I started the UNICEF club, because it gives me and others the opportunity to help children in need.”

Starting the club isn’t all that DeWan’s job is. “As president, my job is to run the meetings, be at the fundraising events, answer any questions that our members might have, and to stay up to date with what UNICEF is doing,” DeWan said. ”I also help organize events and co-run the social media accounts with Jada.” The club uses social media to inform about what UNICEF is, meetings, and upcoming events.

The club is using the money they raised from their recent bake sale to help stop human trafficking. Countries like North Korea, Syria, and Russia have high rates of trafficking and forced labor. More than half of the population in Syria has been displaced due to war, and the Syrians in refugee camps are very vulnerable to trafficking. Their goal was $300, but they exceeded it and raised over $500, which was sent to UNICEF USA.

Many people don’t get informed about the problems that come from human trafficking. It can cause people to develop PTSD, and other things. “It’s really, really harmful,” DeWan says. “A lot of people don’t speak out about it because it’s something so horrible, it’s frowned upon and people aren’t getting the help they need.”

Venson, the secretary, has an important role in the club and in fundraisers. “My role in organizing the bake sale was to get the information out and help our message get out there.” She also keeps track of dates and takes notes at meetings.

According to Venson, even if you don’t join the club, but you still want to help, you can contribute and support UNICEF by staying up to date with what the club is doing, coming to meetings, and going to fundraisers.

“Being in UNICEF LCHS has affected me in many ways. Being in the club has gotten me out of my shell when talking about things I’m passionate about.” Venson said, “This club has made me very happy knowing that I can help others even as just a young girl.”

At meetings, the club members discuss what needs to get done, decide what fundraisers to do, and set up the fundraiser once they decide what it is. At the first meetings, they introduced the club, and got the word out to people.

The freshmen want to continue and grow the club throughout their years in high school, and help children that are suffering. According to Venson, the current plans are to raise their yearly goal and send the money to UNICEF USA to help kids who are trafficked.

“I plan to try and grow the club as much as I can. I can do this by getting more members, doing more fundraisers, and by spreading the word about UNICEF. I want everyone to be able to help others and this club is a great way to do that!” DeWan says.

Spanish teacher puts a twist on traditional learning

Alexis Shugars | Guest Writer

Spanish 4 Students learn their new vocabulary by doing speed dating during class. Most students enjoyed this activity. Photo: Lisa Tartaglia

How would you feel if you had to answer twenty questions from somebody you barely know? How about if you had to answer them in a different language? Teacher Joshua Brown proposed this challenge to his Spanish 4 class in February to help students practice their target language.

Brown planned the speed dating activity to coincide with Valentine’s Day. Brown says the point of the activity was to try to get the students to talk to each other, only speaking Spanish.

“We have been doing a unit on interpersonal relationships, and so they had to come up with questions they would ask on a date to get to know someone,” said Brown.

Brown modified an existing activity from a folder of lessons that all Spanish teachers share. The students had to speak with each other for two minutes, and then Brown would ring a bell signaling them to rotate to the next person.

According to Brown, for the most part the students really enjoyed it, but there were a few students who thought it was awkward.

Even though in the past students were hesitant to do the speed dating, they still participated. “So far I haven’t had anyone who just flat out refused to do it,” said Brown. He plans on doing this activity in the years to come, but says there might be some different variations.

Brown says the activity is also for them to get to know their classmates. He told his students, “I’m sure there’s at least one student in here that you have never even talked to, and you have been in the same classroom with them for how many months now.”

He said that there were a few students who didn’t like the idea of speaking only in Spanish. “I told them at first it’s going to be very hard, where you feel like it’s a challenge for you to only speak in Spanish during this,” says Brown.

“First I thought it was kind of a weird project, because everything he was doing around Valentine’s Day was very couple-ly,” said sophomore Adia Davis. According to Davis, along with speed dating, students also had to create a dating profile the class before.

Davis said it was a little bit awkward at first, but in the end everything turned out okay. The students were not allowed to pick their partners for the activity. They were numbered either one or two. The one’s stayed at the desk, and the two’s moved around every two minutes.

“We asked a lot of questions like what’s your family like, what’s your favorite color, what’s your favorite food, pretty easy questions,” said Davis.

Ultimately, Davis says she would recommend this activity to future students, because you get good practice on being able to speak and have a conversation, and also you get to know your classmates that you normally wouldn’t talk to.

Sophomore Gretchen Allen was another student that did the speed dating activity in Brown’s class. Allen said that the students wrote down 20 questions that they would ask each other.

Allen said if she had the opportunity to do this activity again, she would do different types of questions that have a theme instead of random questions.

When Brown first mentioned the activity to Allen, she said she wasn’t sure if it was going to work because they were speaking only in Spanish. “After three people went by, then it was easy to remember all the Spanish that I’ve learned, and it was easy to think of words to communicate.”

COMMUNITY CALENDAR

January 28: College Financial Aid Workshop.
January 30: Blood Drive.
January 31: Club day. Adjusted schedule.
February 4: Blood Drive. PTSA Meeting.
February 5: Electives Fair during lunch.
February 12: Wellness Wednesday. Academic Night.
February 13: NHS Meeting. Band Pre-Assessment Concert
February 19: Academic night.
February 20-22: Play, 7 p.m.
February 28: Club days
March 3: Student Holiday.
March 5-7: Play, 7 p.m.
March 10: PTSA Meeting. Rising Senior Information Night.
March 20: Club days.
March 26: End of quarter.
March 27: Student Holiday
April 1: Rising 9th Grade Visit.
April 6-10: No school. Spring Break.
April 14: PTSA Meeting.
April 15: Booster Club Meeting.
April 16: NHS Meeting.
April 22: Wellness Wednesday. Guitar Concert.
April 23: Guitar Spring Concert.
April 24: Prom.
April 29: Spring Concert. College Commitment Day.
April 30: String Spring Concert.
May 5: PTSA Meeting.
May 13: Booster Club Meeting.
May 14: NHS Meeting. Play.
May 14-16: Play, 7 p.m.
May 19: Guitar/Orchestra Concert.
May 21: Choir Spring Concert.
May 22: Choir/Banquet/Senior Showcase.
May 26: Band Spring Concert.
May 28: JLSMS Spring Concert.
June 2: PTSA Meeting.
June 4: Senior Awards Ceremony & Yearbook Dist. NHS Meeting.
June 8: Year Distribution
June 10: Last Day of School.
June 12: Graduation

NEWS BRIEF: WINNERS OF AUTUMN LITERARY CONTEST ANNOUNCED

Olivia Zavadil | Business Manager

The Crossed Sabres literary magazine has selected students Mia Jimenez and Julia Calvert as the winners of this years’ Autumn fiction and art contest. Jimenez’s short story, “Vivat Rex,” and Calvert’s illustration “Hallowed Man” will be featured in this year’s magazine. General submissions to the literary magazine are open through March 1, and interested students should turn in work and signed submission forms in Room 104.