High school students take on Ugandan cause
Three years ago, a stunning story of a hard life in Uganda inspired a small group of parishioners at St. Mary of Vernon Catholic Church to pledge help.
Since then, the mission of Children's Outreach and Vocational Education (COVE) Alliance to help orphaned and disadvantaged children in the African nation has spread to include Vernon Hills and Stevenson high schools.
Both are raising funds to build a school in Kapeeka, Uganda, a small, rural community that has been devastated by civil war and AIDS.
The Candle Campaign, borrowed from a Chinese proverb, "It is better to light a single candle than to curse the darkness," continues through April at Vernon Hills High School.
Students and staff have been finding unique ways of raising funds. For example, students made a "candle" T-shirt for anyone who donated $75 and Principal Ellen Cwick pledged $2,000 from vending machine sales.
"There's numerous little efforts that students and staff are trying to do," said Tom Chinske, faculty sponsor for the campaign.
Affiliations also have been made with local companies, such as Rust-Oleum and McDonald's.
"We're going all out -- we believe in it," he said. "We're hoping for even more community support."
As of April 9, the effort had netted about $11,000. The goal is $16,000.
Students and faculty regard the campaign as the beginning of a continuing effort. Some are discussing the possibility of taking a trip to Uganda.
"This is a project we hope to continue to do," Chinske said. "We haven't had a direct connection. Our first step was to educate and create an awareness in our own school."
The Diversity Council at Stevenson also is supporting the effort. Last spring, several COVE board members as well as Executive Director Hilary Muheezangango met with the council.
Stevenson students chose COVE to receive net profits and donations from its annual World's Fair April 26 and 27.
While serving an internship at St. Mary of Vernon, Muheezangango's story led to the creation of COVE, a not-for-profit organization.
"I never knew what a life-altering experience was until I went over there (Kapeeka) last summer," said Darlene Frantonius, vice-chairwoman of the group.
Donations to date have been used to build a clinic, scheduled to open next month to serve 23,000 people in and around the village, she said. One of five children born in Uganda die before the age of five.
The group also sponsors 116 children, providing education and health care. Because kids are typically kept home to raise crops and do other chores, sending a child to school in the remote town is a major sacrifice, according to COVE.
The next goal is to build a vocational school to help break the cycle of poverty.
For information on COVE call Frantonius at (847) 438-4780 or e-mail Darf10@comcast.net.