The Cheverus Haiti Solidarity Club has been in existence for five years now.  Mary King, a Theology teacher and the Moderator of the Cheverus Haiti Solidarity Club has travelled to Haiti several times mostly to work with Haitian school teachers.  She has travelled with a group called Konbit Pwof or Project Teach. (http://www.project-teach-haiti.org/)  Before one of the trips her students helped to raise funds for her trip and to collect school supplies for her to bring down.  Because they were so interested and effective she decided to start the club.

As a school, Cheverus raised $6,100 in earth quake relief money.  The money was raised through various projects.  They sent that money to The Jesuit Refugee Service.  According to Mary King, “They were already working in Haiti, so they are equipped to address the long term needs there.   We also continue to support our sister school in Haiti, L'ecoe de Dubuisson.  The proceeds from our annual Christmas Tree Sale always benefit the school, but we also have various other fundraisers throughout the year to support them.   At the moment we are selling heart shaped silver and copper necklaces made by students in the club. All proceeds will go to the school.” 

Cheverus High School also had a prayer service and wrote to the IMF encouraging them to cancel Haiti's burdensome debt and to help Haiti with grants not loans into the future.   

Mary King explained that the goal of the Cheverus High School Haiti Solidarity Club is “ to teach about global poverty, its causes, consequences and how we may contribute to it.  Most importantly the Club tries to find ways to alleviate global poverty.  This is in keeping with our mission as a Jesuit Catholic school to serve others.  Our primary focus is Haiti, but we also do other broader projects.  (for example: we have a fair trade awareness campaign every year, we are involved in a micro-loan project, we take students on a service immersion trip to the DR each spring, there they work in an orphanage and with Haitian's living in deplorable conditions in the Dominican )”

Cheverus’s Haiti Solidarity Club, which supports a sister school in Haiti, led the fundraising for Haiti relief, along with the Cheverus Mothers’ Club, the student council, the campus ministry, and students, staff, and faculty.  More information is available from Jody Lamscha at 207-774-6238, ext. 25

Cheverus High School

Biddeford Middle School and Biddeford High School Raise Funds

Students and teachers at Biddeford’s Middle and High Schools have raised more than $1,200 for disaster relief in Haiti.

According to a January 29, 2010, news item in The Portland Press Herald,

the World Language teachers at the middle school coordinated a bake and cocoa sale that raised $500.  The At Work Current Global Issues class at the middle school led a donation campaign that raised $330.  At Biddeford High School, the National Honor Society solicited $450 in donations.  The funds

will go to Doctors Without Borders.

Maine High Schools Partnering With Garen L. Cole Disaster Relief Fund

Brewer High School, Hampden Academy, and Hermon  High School, Lubec Consolidated, Vinalhaven School, have partnered with the Garen L. Cole Disaster Relief Fund to raise money for Haiti.  The Garen L. Cole Foundation will match the funds raised up to $2, 500 per school.

Civil Rights Team at Monmouth Academy Raises Money for Haiti

Jocelyn Curtis, a teacher and Civil Rights adviser at Monmouth Academy, reported that “The Civil Rights Team, with help from the Monmouth Academy students and staff, has raised $100 toward the Haitian earthquake relief. The Civil Rights Team collected donations and made bracelets to sell to the students and staff at the school. Though we are a small school of only 270 students, the concern was there and I hope we made a difference. I am very proud of my Civil Rights group for all the work they put into it.”

Catherine McAuley High School Helps Haiti 

When news of the devastation in Haiti broke, the McAuley family of Catherine McAuley High School banded together to discuss the steps that could be taken to assist with relief efforts.   In this call to action, the McAuley community donated over $2000 in funds to support this cause, the first of which came from the proceeds of the Basketball Team’s January 22, 2010 game again Westbrook.  All admission fee and concession dollars received, along with various monetary donations, totaling $1000, were donated to the American Red Cross that evening.  Just one week later, on January 29, McAuley held a “Dress Down” day, with all proceeds directly benefiting the citizens of Haiti via Catholic Relief Services.  Students donated an impressive $1009.80.  In an email from Ericka Prefontaine Sanborn of Catherine McAuley High,  Catherine McAuley was quoted as once saying that “Our name is Mercy; our spirit is compassion."  Ms. Prefontaine Sanborn  said  “In this spirit, “Catherine McAuley High School is proud to have done our part, and thank those who so willingly joined us in this cause.”   
 

Proceeds from the Catherine McAuley’s January 22

basketball game were donated to the Haitian Relief

Fund of the American Red Cross.

Falmouth High School 

An advisory group led by Dede Waite collected "Dollars for Haiti". They raised $613.58 in a week of lunchtime donations, which was sent to Partners in Health.  
 

Jessica Brewer and her students created note cards inspired by Haitian art that are being sold with all proceeds going to Hope for Haiti. These cards are for sale for a suggested donation of $10.00 for a package of eight. To date they have made more that $2,000.00.  They are currently on sale in the offices at each school and are also being sold at Forget Me Nots and Maine Roasters Coffee in Falmouth. There will also be a sale of the cards at Shaw’s in Falmouth on Saturday, March 6, 11-3pm.  Jessica’s students compared different organizations providing relief in Haiti. Using Charity Navigator as a tool, students researched information about several organizations. They looked at % of donations that go to direct programs and services vs. administrative costs. They also looked at each organization’s mission. Based on mission and % of funds that went directly to programming they determined the organization they wanted to support.   Jessica has also reached out to the Falmouth High School Key Club who will be staffing the Shaw’s sale of the note cards and assisting in preparing the cards for sale on a regular basis. The Falmouth High School Key Club will also be making and selling beaded bracelets to raise funds for relief efforts. 

Additionally, the Falmouth High School Key Club will be having “mud cookie” sales in March to support relief efforts. Real mud cookies are cookies made of clay, shortening and salt eaten by the people of Haiti. Key club members will be making cookies that resemble them in appearance alone, but will have a tag attached that explains real mud cookies.  The Key Club is also initiating a used cell phone drive with proceeds going to Hope for Haiti. 

The OceanView Kids’ Club ~ after school Program :  On Thursday, January 21 children/students and elders also decorated note cards that will be sold with all proceeds going to relief efforts in Haiti.  

The Sophomore Executive Board is holding a Bake sale to fund raise for relief efforts in Haiti.

South Portland High School French Club Sends School Supplies To Haiti

Cecile LaPlante, the French Club advisor at South Portland High School shared the following information in a May 6, 2010, email: 

“The French Club has been very active with our Haiti project for over ten years.  Every year, in June, we ask all students to donate their ‘used or unused school supplies’ to our sister school in Haiti.  We put out boxes in all our hallways and ask students to place anything that still in good condition in these boxes.  We go through these boxes to sort out what is good and what isn't.  We save all paper, pencils, notebooks, etc.  On the last day of school, we go through all the lockers and clean them out and box up what has been left behind.  Some years, we have left notes in French to our friends wishing them a good school year.  In all, we collect approximately 40 good sized boxes of goods.  Lately, we've put out notices on our local tv station and some community members have brought writing pads, pens, pencils, crayons, that they've collected to add to our boxes.  This year, we would like to expand it more.  We would like to go to our two middle schools to ask them for help.  It is time consuming and hard work but we just love to see all the wonderful supplies go to a worthy cause.  Through the Konbit Sante organization, we are able to ship these boxes along with their medical supplies.  Students feel so great after it's all done and they can truly see how we have helped in a very special way without donating any money, which we don't have.”