A group of students working with teachers and administrators raised over $500 with a "Freestyle" fundraiser, and have collected over $100 worth of pennies to donate to "Pennies for Peace," a program of the non-profit organization, Central Asia Institute.
The group hopes to raise awareness of the work being done in the remote mountainous regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan to build schools in villages where none exist, and to train local people as teachers. Central Asia Institute has built 64 such schools in the area since it began in 1996, and has provided education to over 24,000 students, with an emphasis on girls' education.
The Montrose High School group has several additional fundraisers planned, and the students in the group hope to reach out to younger pupils by giving presentations in elementary and secondary school classes.
Altrusa provided a jar containing over $22 worth of pennies to the high school group, which was the first organization in Montrose to officially sign up for the "Pennies for Peace" (P4P) drive. In addition to the $660 raised at the P4P kickoff event, individual Altrusan donors have contributed another $120 to Central Asia Institute to date.
Teacher Russell Evans pours pennies from a jar collected by Altrusa into a large container
as Heath Jensen, Chris Hood, Addie Eichhorn, and Kayla Watson look on.
as Heath Jensen, Chris Hood, Addie Eichhorn, and Kayla Watson look on.
