2.21.2011

Hope from Harlem

Recently I received a very nice note from a fellow fifth grade teacher.  We've never met, never spoken, have no connections - her correspondence came as a complete surprise.  At some point she found our family's blog, and shared Celia's story with her students as part of a writing prompt to get them thinking about living forever.  As she tells it, the fifth graders became captivated and wanted to do more.  They devised a plan to raise money for BDSRA.

An excerpt from the note from Ms. Smith, their teacher, explains:
They created Care Cranes for Celia. These paper cranes were quite the craze for five days following random posters saying, "Celia Rocks." The kids made, advertised, and sold the cranes. High schoolers in New Heights walked around saying, "Who's Celia? How can I help her?" It was magical. 

This week these children mailed a check for $160.
To quote Shakespeare, we "can no other answer make but thanks and thanks and ever thanks."
JEB

12 comments:

Smitty 1, 2 , 3 and 4 said...

God bless them! What an amazing act of kindness. Reading this post made my cheeks moist from a constant stream of tears.
What blessing and inspiration. Those children remind me that our future is brighter. They re-instill my hope for tomorrow...

The Wendels said...

And the circle grows....

Joyce Donahue said...

The wonders of young hearts never ceases to amaze me.

Beth Ann said...

Sending a hug and thank you to each and every one of those generous and caring young people. Kudos to Ms. Smith as well. As teachers, we know that education is about teaching so much more than the abc's and 123's. What a valuable life lesson. Keep up the good works!!!

Poppy John said...

Those 5th graders ROCK!
L2A4 and Ms. Smith.

P.S. Maybe Grandma Sandy spent three years in fifth grade because her class(es) did wonderful projects like the Harlem kids.(?)

Miriam said...

That's truly amazing and brought tears to my eyes. Loving teachers and children make the world a very special place.

Clarks said...

What an awesome teacher and amazing 5th graders doing something so wonderful for a special cause.

Linda K. said...

THIS is why we teach -- to help our students see they are part of a bigger world and to help them become positive citizens in that world. What an amazing story, amazing teacher and amazing students....all to show love for an amazing teacher here in Ohio and her amazing daughter, Celia!

Shanna said...

The story of those children wanting to make a diference brings tears to my eyes. So sweet!

Anonymous said...

That makes my heart sing. Especially in light of all the crap that's getting dumped on teachers right now...if only everyone could see stories like this. Go, Celia, Go...spread your magic spirit!!!

fiercemom said...

what a wonderful, powerful, amazing story. thank you so much for sharing.

Debi said...

Amazing kids and outstanding teacher. They are learning important life lessons at an early age.