Friends of Copey

Strong Children…Productive Adults

“Every child comes with the message that God is not yet discouraged of man.”                                  By Rabindranath Tagore

Surprises Show Up!

Last week I shared a message from Brian and thank you for the feedback. He is on the right track and has a very promising future.

This “Friends of Copey” business is an ongoing experience full of surprises. I am always ready for surprises and I enjoy sharing these with “Friends”.CLC Students.10 Last week I received a group of letters (unsolicited) from Copey Learning Center (CLC) students addressed to “Friends of Copey”.

These students are younger than Brian. Their messages are positive and you will appreciate the influence we are having on these students.

Kenneth is only a 7-year-old and a recipient of the Anne G. Broady Scholarship Fund. Most likely, he is from a home where little or no English is spoken. At one point a few years ago, this would resemble Brian’s skill level.

A second letter is from Dayana. She is a 14-year-old demonstrating the advanced level of English proficiency she has obtained. She is also a scholarship recipient and conveys a very positive attitude and optimism about her progress and self-worth. She shows a strong command of English and her penmanship is very impressive. These are only two of about 10 letters I have received. More letters will be shared next week. 

If you are new to “Friends of Copey”,  please consider there is not much opportunity for these students to learn English until they make it to the CLC. And, many of these young kids will not get to the CLC without the help of “Friends”. I am continuously uplifted to see this evidence of our efforts “making a difference!”

Next…Strike Up the Band!

Last week, we achieved a very major milestone in our five years working with the CLC. The Skype connection/meeting between Jefferson Elementary Students (Kiwanis K-Kids) and CLC students has been successfully accomplished after more than three years trying. Remember…“one step for man…one giant step for mankind”? (Un-PC’d) Feels very similar.

This was a system’s test to see if the connections would finally work. Only the officers of the Kiwanis K-Kids at Jefferson and selected students proficient in English at CLC participated in this first test session. This photo was taken during the exchange as both ends using laptops to communicate. Notice the big smiles on the CLC students’ faces?

The future is promising as we now know we can begin seriously planning presentations on various topics of interest to both groups of students.

“History will judge us by the difference we make in the everyday lives of children” said Nelson Mandela.

 

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