For the past eight years, we have partnered with dozens of U.S. schools across the country.  An example of one of our partnerships is with Coe Elementary School in Seattle, Washington.  It was the first school to participate in our project and it has become a national role model of what it looks like for kids to help kids.  They have become our heroes as well as the heroes for the kids in Afghanistan.

At the time Julia approached Coe in the spring of 2002, the students were temporarily housed in another school, because their school had burned completely to the ground.  While most communities would have been focused on simply getting through the year and worrying about their own kids, Coe parents, teachers, students and staff approached me – asking, “What can we do to help the children in Afghanistan?”

Our partnership, which started over seven years, is still going strong.  We would like to share a bit of our story with you:

·                     Julia has literally spoken dozens of times at Coe, both in classrooms and at assemblies.  Among other things, the children and their parents learned about poverty in the developing world; what it means to live on less than $1/day in Afghanistan; the history, culture, and religion of Afghanistan; life for boys and girls there; schooling and the education system; and how we can help and empower others.  With the teachers’ help, we tried to make this as interactive as possible.  In addition to trying on turbans and burkhas and dressing up in Afghan clothing, kids got to carry water, sample Afghan foods, and go without electricity.  Consequently, the students have a good idea of what the contrasts between America and the developing world and a better understanding of the blessings we have here. 

·                     After learning about the situation in Afghanistan, the Coe community decided to journey with one of the first girls’ schools that opened in northern Afghanistan after the Taliban was removed from power.  In addition to helping us raise money to build the school, they committed to raising $3,600 each year in the future to help sustain the school.  To date, they have raised almost $40,000.
 

·                     When we started the project, Julia challenged the kids to raise $.50/week for 10 weeks.  She mentioned that this was not a project for their parents but for them.  Her hope was that they would become stewards in the future and set money aside for any good cause.  Much to our amazement and joy, many of the children started emptying their piggy banks and asking classmates to bring money instead of birthday presents to parties.  Some held bake sales or played instruments on street corners; some babysat or washed cars.  Many of them now set money aside on a regular basis to help others.  As a result of this work, a number of the classes have gotten involved with other projects around the globe and in the local community. 

·                     This year, Coe’s exchange project centers around gardens and agriculture. In addition to learning about plants and soil, what agriculture looks like in a developing world country (like Afghanistan), and what families grow in Afghanistan, they decided to grow their own school garden.  Their hope is that kids would learn about the benefits of growing a garden and see how easily it could be done.  On the other side of the world, however, Coe will be helping the Afghans learn about new growing techniques, drip irrigation and the importance of food nutrition.  We hope this exchange will help eliminate malnutrition in the communities.

·                     When the program first got off the ground, Afghanistan was ranked as the poorest country in the world by the United Nations.  Few children had shoes or coats.  None had paper or pencils.  Together with other friends and family in Seattle, Coe helped Julia to collect clothes, school supplies, and athletic equipment and we sent over four containers to Afghanistan worth almost $1 million.

·                     We did not only want to build structures; we wanted to build relationships.  In 2002, Coe kids started a cultural exchange program with their sister school in Afghanistan.  The students and families made photo albums, videos, friendship bracelets, art work, and banners for the kids in Afghanistan.  Their hope, like ours, is that the Afghan students would come to know and understand us better and we would get to know them.

·                     In addition to inviting Julia to speak in the classroom, Coe held several large assemblies and invited various Afghan guests.  Over the last few years, they honored the Director of Women’s Affairs from the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Governor of Balkh Province, the President of the Balkh Provincial Council, and visiting Afghan professors attending the University of Washington.
 

·                     To show other kids that they, too, could make a difference, the Coe Community agreed to have students speak on the radio and on television.  Several were also interviewed for local newspapers and national magazines.  One of these magazines, called FACES, did an entire article about the Coe kids.
  

·                     Finally, several of the kids have written letters to their Congressman and one former student even went to Washington, DC with Julia one summer to meet with members of Congress on the importance of educating kids and ensuring access for all.  We’re proud to say more than a handful of the students are now grassroots activists. 

Although the kids have gotten much of the attention in the media, a great deal of credit is owed to the parents, teachers and staff at Coe.  There is no question that Coe Elementary community, as well as the other schools we are working with, has a huge heart for making this world a better place.  It is an extremely unique community, starting with the principal, David Elliott.  His passion for education and compassion for children in need really radiates throughout the school.  In 2007, he joined our team for over two weeks in Afghanistan.  While visiting many of the schools with us, as well as community and government leaders, he served as an amazing ambassador and advocate.  He not only spoke about the importance of educating kids in Afghanistan, but he demonstrated to all our interest in building bridges of understanding.  Furthermore, to ensure that kids at his school and those around the nation “journeying” got a glimpse into the lives of the Afghan school children, he did a blog that was sent around the country.

Moreover, we have to give a great deal of credit to the parents and teachers at Coe.  The parents have helped ensure that this program is not simply about the kids at Coe.  They have become role models for dozens of other schools around America that are now journeying with us or using several of the programs established or implemented by Coe, including cultural exchanges, student citizenship activities, student advocacy, and student fundraising.  Later this year, they will implement a day called, “A Day in the Life of an Afghan Student.”  Needless to say, it is clear that this isn’t a place where children are learning to simply read and write, but learning about the bigger world and their responsibility for helping others, albeit their neighbor or someone on the other side of the world.  

Interestingly, when we speak to the Afghan teachers, students and principal in Afghanistan about Coe, eyes simply light up.  Despite the miles, this community has managed to bring hope and opportunity to one of the most desperate places on earth.   One of the last times Julia was in Afghanistan, she received a beautiful, handmade rug from the principal of the Afghan school for Mr. Elliott.  She also received a gift as well.  Woven into the design are two flags:  one American and one Afghan, showing the friendship that has been formed between these two communities.  Given that this is a country where there was such hatred against the United States, this simple gift speaks volumes.