Vernon Hills High students volunteer in Uganda
A team of Vernon Hills High School students and teachers is in Uganda to volunteer at a school with ties to the Cougar community.
The 10-member squad - including ex-Principal Ellen Cwick - left this week and will be in Africa until Aug. 5.
"It will be a life-changing experience for all of them," said Mary Todoric, a spokeswoman for Libertyville-Vernon Hills Area High School District 128.
It's the latest Vernon Hills High project focused on the Cove School. The work is done with the Cove Alliance, a Christian group based in Libertyville that aims to help orphaned and poor children in Uganda with nutrition, health care, housing and education.
Vernon Hills High teachers, students and community members have raised money to support the Cove School since 2008, and they've helped Cove students in other ways through the years.
For example, Vernon Hills High students have collected books, school supplies and shoes for their Ugandan counterparts.
In occasional summertime visits, Cwick and other staffers and students have taught lessons at the Cove School, organized a workshop for local farmers and entrepreneurs and talked to students about life in the U.S.
This time, Vernon Hills employees will meet with Cove staffers to share professional and educational tips, Vernon Hills High Principal Jon Guillaume said.
The American and African students will spend time with each other, too.
And the American adults and teens will work on maintenance and beautification projects at the school.
"Inevitably, our team comes back with a greater appreciation for what we as Americans often take for granted," Guillaume said.