Clairbourn second-grade students learned the value of giving back during their yearly fundraiser to benefit the Door of Hope homeless shelter in Pasadena. For the past 21 years, the second grade class has held a pocket change drive to help support those living at the Door of Hope. This shelter for homeless families strives to restore disrupted lives and to break the cycles of homelessness and domestic violence.
To kick-start the fundraiser, Door of Hope Executive Director Rev. Megan Katerjian visited Clairbourn to speak with the second grade class about homelessness in Los Angeles and the fact that 9% of the 58,936 homeless people are children under the age of 18. While those numbers are staggering, Rev. Katerjian reassured the students that their fundraising efforts matter and that no one is ever too young to make an impact in the lives of others.
Over a week’s time-span, second grade students developed their leadership skills as they delivered announcements at the school’s Morning Assembly and as they walked door to door on campus or stood at the school’s entrance to explain the cause and ask for donations. After each day of collecting, students counted and sorted the coins and bills they had received. Their final donation numbers were $440.96 in coins and $604 in bills totaling $1,044.96.
At the Morning Assembly on January 31, students presented the Rev. Megan Katerjian with an oversized check payable to the Door of Hope. In their final presentation of the fundraising results, they gave gratitude for everyone’s selfless contributions and even shared a list of unusual items they collected. Students received coins from Panama, Taiwan, Mexico, South Korea, Canada, Australia, Japan, and Spain, as well as a flattened penny, a guardian angel token, a penny from 1946, an old key, and a Chuck E. Cheese game token.
Raising $1,044 may not seem like a lot, but according to Rev. Katerjian, it only costs $0.15 per meal to feed each person at the Door of Hope. This means the money students raised could provide around 6,966 meals for the 21 parents and 61 children currently living at the Door of Hope. The money could also go towards after-school programing, job search support, therapy, and new housing for families after 6 months. The Door of Hope’s success rate with program graduates is incredible – 97% of families who received Door of Hope housing assistance are still in their new homes a year later, and 83% of them never experience homelessness again.
Clairbourn School’s mission is to “Create Scholars and Leaders with Heart,” and service activities like the Door of Hope fundraiser not only compliment the challenging academic program but encourage students to use their intelligence and talents to help solve challenging problems. The world needs students who can think, care, act, appreciate the perspectives of others, and make a difference. Proof that these lessons stick is in the fact that three of Clairbourn’s graduates have continued to support the Door of Hope through their high school years and have served on the Door of Hope Student Leadership Board.
To learn more about the Door of Hope and explore volunteering and giving opportunities, please visit the Door of Hope website.
Clairbourn School Provides Private School Education for Preschool, Kindergarten, Elementary School, and Middle School Grades | Serving Families in the Pasadena, California, Area and Surrounding Cities (K-12 Private Schools) Clairbourn is a 501(c)3 charitable organization. Click here to request information.
Creating Scholars and Leaders with Heart