Donna Hamer had an idea. The Churchill Junior High School teacher thought, somehow, she could involve the entire East Brunswick school in an educational project, while at the same time raising money to help children around the world who cannot walk due to the condition known as clubfoot.
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Over the course of the school year, the idea blossomed into a project called Great Strides, a fitting name because the students have helped at least 25 economically disadvantaged children be able to walk.
Hamer’s project took off after she contacted RandomKid, a nonprofit organization co-founded in 2005 by then 10-year-old Talia Leman. Talia and her mother, Dana, at first united kids across the U.S. to raise more than $10 million for Hurricane Katrina/Rita relief, but have since branched off into numerous types of charitable endeavors. Talia is now 14 and serves as CEO of RandomKid. After Hamer contacted them, RandomKid set out to help the 1.3 million children in the world who cannot walk due to clubfoot, a congenital condition in which the foot turns inward and downward.
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"Clubfoot is the most disabling deformity in the world," Hamer said. "It is extremely painful, and in the poorer regions the children have no access to school because they can’t walk."
There is a gentle, successful way to correct the condition. Developed by Dr. Ignacio Ponsetti, who has clinics in 44 countries, the technique involves a series of five castings over four to five weeks. Thousands of children treated at the clinics can now walk.
"So at Churchill, the students who participated asked for pledge money from friends and family to support their goal of walking a marathon — 26.2 miles," Hamer said. Each student was given a pedometer, courtesy of RandomKid, and walked whenever they wanted to. Teachers and administrators also walked.
Health teachers ran a lesson on clubfoot. Social studies teachers used the mileage tallies to ask geography related questions. Physical education teachers handed out pledge sheets and pedometers and helped students measure their strides. One of the Spanish teachers made a PowerPoint slide show that was shown in the cafeteria. The school also had a "Spare Change for Change" day when kids and staff tossed extra change into big jars.
The students eventually learned, through RandomKid, that more than two-dozen children could now walk, thanks to the school’s efforts.
"They will walk normally and lead a much-improved life," Hamer said. "That is so exciting to me … very overwhelming."
Another part of the project involved the symbol of Great Strides — a sneaker. All the posters put up around the school had a sneaker on them. RandomKid found a sneaker company to give the school 50 pairs of sneakers. The school then had several "Sneaker Fest" days for students to decorate sneakers with paint, pens and markers.
"We will send these sneakers out to children around the world who need footwear," Hamer said, noting that RandomKid is providing the address of a company to distribute them.
May 22 brought what Hamer described as "one of the most rewarding and meaningful experiences of the entire project." Through the World Health Organization, the school was able to take part in a video/phone conference with the doctors at the University of Iowa, where Dr. Ponsetti practices. Ponsetti’s physicians talked about their experiences with children in clinics and showed photos of kids in Rwanda and Tanzania, for example.
The Churchill students, along with children from Iowa schools that had learned about Great Strides and decided to get involved, listened and asked questions.
"It was really awesome," Hamer said.
The teacher stressed how the RandomKid organization helped the project come to fruition, describing Talia and Dana as "amazing" people. Their support and compassion "were invaluable in making my idea a reality," Hamer said.
She hopes next year to get other East Brunswick schools involved.
"Walking is something we all take for granted, and to just walk so that others will be able to walk for the first time in their lives is very fulfilling," she said.
— Brian Donahue