‘Invisible Children’ Fundraiser Over For Now At NHS

By Eliza Hallabeck

Samantha Kent said the past 100 days that marked a fundraiser at Newtown High School was remarkable.

“It was an amazing experience,” said Sam, a junior at the school. “A truly amazing experience.”

Invisible Children, a nonprofit organization, connected Newtown High School students to the overwhelming crisis in Africa with a documentary told from the perspective of high school students. Go is the story of a group of students who traveled into the heart of Africa’s longest-running war in Uganda.

At the end of the 35-minute film, Newtown High School students were compelled to become part of the story’s end by getting involved with Invisible Children’s Schools for Schools program, and, right after the film was shown, students donated money to the project by dropping it in jars. Sam, at the time, said some students donated more than $20 each.

Invisible Children, an international organization, created the fundraising program in 2006 in response to the need for quality schools in northern Uganda, where schools that have been destroyed by displacement, rebel occupation, and lack of funding due to the 22-year war. Schools for Schools uses an online social community to help students see where their money is going and connect to different projects, fundraising ideas, and supporters.

The Northeast Invisible Children Coordinator Rachel Caldwell-Powell said Sam, a Newtown High School Junior and Schools for Schools president, was such a gift to her club as well as her community.

This is the school’s first year of participating in Schools for Schools, and, according to Sam, the initiative in Newtown stayed in the top ten percent of schools participating across New England.

Ms Caldwell-Powell said Sam’s creative ideas and leadership skills made this no surprise.

One fundraiser NHS participated in was a duct tape fundraiser. Science Teacher Trent Harrison donated his time and self to NHS’s Schools for Schools initiative when he was duct taped to the wall for almost two hours during a lunch period, raising money all the while. Students sold tape that was donated by Newtown Hardware Store and sold each piece of tape for anywhere from $1 to $20.

Another fundraiser at the school had students donate money and vote on the administrator or teacher they wanted to kiss a llama at the school’s pep-rally. Assistant Principal John Tusch earned the most votes.

A coffeehouse night was also held in the lobby of the high school to raise money for Invisible Children. Sam put together a night of students singing and reading poetry for the occasion.

Altogether, through fundraising, Newtown raised around $4,000 for their partner school, Atanga Secondary School in Northern Uganda.

This fall Invisible Children will be awarding students the chance to go to Uganda. In addition to schools that raise the most money, Invisible Children will be awarding three tickets each to schools with the most creative ideas and most books donated.

The Schools for Schools fundraising competition started on September 8 and ended December 18.

Sam said she is thankful to My Place Restaurant for holding a fundraising night on December 9 and to the Russo Hillside Llamas for lending the Invisible Children group at NHS their llamas and also to Newtown Hardware.

“The things that my school and I have done are helping students get an education,” said Sam, who also said she aspires to help the world.

“I think next year will really be our big year,” said Sam.

Invisible Children, according to Sam, will be coming back to the school in the spring to show Go again, and in the fall the fundraiser will start back up.

Sam said she hopes someone will pick up working with Invisible Children at NHS after she graduates next year.

Overall, Sam said students at NHS were impacted with how they can help. She also said fundraisers in the community are already lined up for the fall.