Pencils For Peace

By Tanjua Damon

Fifth graders in Karen King’s class at Reed Intermediate School are learning the value of giving as well as the importance of the simple things in life –– like pencils.

The class has set a goal of collecting 10,000 pencils to send to a school in Shala, Kosovo, that was bombed, leaving students and teachers with few supplies. The idea came from a friend of Ms King’s, Padraig Power, who has been helping organize collections for the town for several years.

Ms King wrote to Sami Drenica, the head master of Idriz Ajeti, and he wrote back to her in Albanian, which she does not speak or read. After having the letter translated she thought the project would be a good service for her students to learn about and in which to participate.

The Newtown fifth graders wrote letters without words to the students in Shala. They drew pictures of themselves and the things they like to do.

The students are wearing tags that say, “Ask Me About Pencils for Peace.” More than 1,000 pencils have been collected since the project began about two weeks ago. The students also decided to try and use only one pencil for the entire month of March to see if they can be frugal and understand better what it is like to have only one of something. Some students even tape their pencils to their desks so they do not get lost, according to Elizabeth Anderson.

Some of the students at Idriz Ajeti school feel like they have been forgotten since their school was bombed. The school has since been rebuilt, but it is still lacking the necessary supplies such as pencils and papers needed to educate the students.

“I think it’s a good idea,” Sara Kelly said. “They feel forgotten. It’s a great thing so they won’t feel that way.”

“They said that they were forgotten. That’s really a horrible feeling,” Katie Volkers said. “We really want everyone to be equal.”

“We are taking pencils for granted,” Molly Nostrand added. “We’re in this brand new school. We have all the supplies we need.”

The school in Kosovo has 850 students ages 5 to 15. Mr Power has organized for ambulances and fire trucks to be donated to the little town. He turns on the sirens each time he delivers something to the town so that the people there know they have not been forgotten.

“I like the idea of this,” Lindsey Lively added. “It’s a cool project for us to help out a foreign county and to make friends across the country.”

“We really don’t know them, but they are just like us,” Ms King said. “These days you hear in the news so many sad stories. You can either chose to feel bad about it or you can chose to make a difference.”

Some of the students in Ms King’s class are realizing the blessings they have been given and how fortunate they are in the United States.

“They’re not saying we need this or that,” Andy Murphy said. “They are just asking for simple supplies.”

“This is something cool we can do,” Morgan Luzzi said. “We love helping people. It makes me feel good.”

The fifth graders are soliciting help from other Reed School students as well as the community. They also have a list of companies they are writing letters to in hopes they will join the “Pencils for Peace” cause to help a foreign community in need.

“I think it’s really great we are helping out another school,” Lauren Powers said. “It’s really great everyone in the whole school is helping out. I think we will reach our goal.”

The students hope to reach their goal of 10,000 pencils by the beginning of April. Anyone wishing to make a donation of pencils should drop them off at the main office at Reed Intermediate School on 3 Trades Lane or contact Karen King at 270-4880.