Bensenville students raise nearly $4000 to empower Nicaraguan peers
Members of Bensenville's Tioga Elementary School Helping Heroes Service Club sold 726 pulseras, or bracelets, to empower their peers in Nicaragua, raising a grand total of $3,930.
The Tioga initiative, which sold 30 purses as well, is part of the Pulsera Project, a national, nonprofit organization formed by students in 2009. The Pulsera Project buys bracelets from Nicaraguan artisans, many who are youth, at fair trade prices and sells them through school organizations such as Tioga's Service Club. The funds raised go back to the Pulsera Project, which supports Nicaraguan youth through scholarships, housing programs, workers' rights advocacy, shelter support and alternate energy programs.
The Service Club sold so many bracelets and bags in the first weeks of the campaign that they had to reorder. The students sold bracelets and bags, each with a unique design, for $5 and $10, respectively.
Liz Fausto, a 2nd grade teacher at Tioga, supervises the Service Club along with the school's art teacher, Katelynn McAllister. Fausto said what really struck her was that Tioga is part of a primarily low-income district-yet her students were still eager to help kids in Nicaragua.
Each pulsera comes with a tag with the picture and signature of the person who made it. The tags sometimes fall off, Fausto said, but many students refused to buy them unless the tags were intact-they wanted to know whom they were helping.
On Wednesday, Feb. 17, students crowded around the table set up in Tioga's cafeteria. One girl, interested in the bags, asked Fausto how much they cost.
"Ten," Fausto replied. The girl became quiet, nodded, and walked back to her lunch table. But a few minutes later, she was back with another question. "Ten dollars, or ten cents?"
Tioga's Service Club, despite being in its first year, has already made quite an impact. Prior to the Pulsera Project, the club, usually about 15 strong, collected coats, socks and other supplies for people who are homeless. This spring, Fausto said they're considering a spring cleaning project or installing a bench that helps include everyone on the playground.