By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
Aiming to help in the rebuilding efforts in Haiti, a group of students from The Pennington School is planning to spend spring break in the island nation, along with a group of volunteers including medical and health care professionals from the Presbyterian Church of Lawrenceville.
The students, who will be accompanied by two teachers from the private, co-educational boarding school, will spend the time repairing schools damaged by the Jan. 12, 2010, earthquake, and assisting in providing medical and dental care. They will also help to distribute food and water to families.
The service trip is planned for March 13-18, said Aaron Twitchell, a chaplain at The Pennington School and one of the two adults from the school who will accompany the 10th- to 12th-grade students on the trip.
”(The trip) is also aimed at supporting the Haitian people’s rights to live healthy and satisfying lives through education, proper nutrition and other basic needs,” Mr. Twitchell said. “Each of the students selected to participate has demonstrated significant maturity and self-awareness about the risks and rewards of such a trip.”
”The group has experience traveling abroad, as well as participating in service projects ranging from after-school tutoring to manual labor. Our goal is to learn from this experience as much as possible, while connecting with the Haitian people in a profound way,” he said.
While the students are paying their own way, they hope to raise $10,000 to purchase construction material and the food they expect to distribute, said Robyn Campbell, the liaison between the church, The Pennington School and Harmony Ministries, with whom the church has had an ongoing relationship.
Thus far, the students have raised $6,000 toward their goal, Ms. Campbell said. They are planning to hold a community event open to the public on Jan. 28 at The Pennington School’s swimming pool, for a suggested donation of $3, to help raise more money.
In the meantime, the students are seeking donations of travel-sized containers of toothpaste and soap, reading glasses, eye drops, toothbrushes and other personal hygiene items to take to Haiti. Drop-off containers have been set up at the school and church.
The church, which is located on Main Street in Lawrenceville, is open Sunday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m.
In addition, people wishing to make a financial contribution may write a check payable to The Pennington School and to note “Haiti” in the memo line. The checks should be mailed to The Pennington School at 112 W. Delaware Ave., Pennington, NJ 08534.
