Pencils, paper, glue and crayons are prized possessions in a nation where guns and bombs are more prevalent.
While classrooms in Lake Orion are filled with these learning supplies, children in Afghanistan are not so fortunate.
That’s why Orion Oaks Elementary decided to take action and send 15 boxes filled with school supplies overseas this past year with ‘Operation: Kids Helping Kids.?
The items we take for granted are precious in a nation torn asunder by extremist rule and the conflict following 9/11, according to Abby Rennels, the music teacher at Orion Oaks Elementary School.
When her brother-in-law, Larry LeGree, a naval commander, was shipped to Afghanistan for 13 months to assist in rebuilding post-Taliban Afghanistan, he noticed a disturbing lack of school supplies.
‘The kids would fight over pencils and pens because they just didn’t have them,? Rennels said.
LeGree arrived in Asadabad in early 2008. When he noticed the problem with the schools, he decided to do something.
But instead of doing it on his own or with a charity, he got his own children involved so he could teach them a valuable lesson about giving.
His children’s elementary school in the Washington D.C. area started a drive for school supplies to ship to the area where he was stationed.
Rennels heard about what her brother-in-law was doing and wanted to start a similar program for her students at Orion Oaks.
‘I thought it was a great way for the kids to get involved,? she said.
She approached Principal Brian Kaplan who said it was a ‘no-brainer.?
The school already had a program, ‘Project Wisdom,? which presents students with daily messages that encourage responsibility, tolerance and citizenship.
‘This fit perfect with us,? Kaplan said.
So, a year ago, the fifth grade Leadership Council began collecting and organizing school supplies to ship over to one struggling school in Asadabad.
The students took to the task with zest, according to Kaplan.
‘They were excited and thrilled. They genuinely care about other kids,? he said.
The program was spoken about almost daily in the morning announcements while students went about gathering lined paper, pencils, colored pencils, pencil sharpeners, washable markers, clear plastic rulers, folders and glue for the school in Afghanistan.
In the end, they had 15 boxes of supplies. Shipping them, though, wasn’t easy, Rennels said.
For the safety of U.S. troops in the area–and LeGree–the boxes could not be marked with anything identifying them with the military.
The boxes had to go through international postal systems, too.
‘You don’t know who’s going to be handling it,? Rennels said.
It took over a month for them to get to the school in Asadabad.
The supplies were much needed when they arrived, especially for new female students who weren’t allowed to attend school under Taliban rule, Rennels said.
Orion Oaks students eventually received a note of thanks from the school with pictures of the Afghan students using the supplies.
LeGree has since come home, which is the only reason the program isn’t still active.
In the long term, Kaplan would like to find a school in Afghanistan his students can become pen pals with.
‘Our goal is to have an ongoing connection with one of the schools over there,? he said.