Andrew Jin, grade 12, recently donated a beautifully crafted enclosed bulletin board he built himself for his final Eagle Scout project. The bulletin board, about 4 ft x 4 ft., features a solid wood frame, cork posting surface, wood-framed plexiglass doors and a lock, and was completed with funding assistance from Home Depot. It will be hung on the upper school campus, to the right of the main entrance, just outside the office of Kevin Williamson, upper school dean of students. Many thanks to Jin for the effort that went into crafting this beauty, and for his kind contribution, which will no doubt be of service to thousands of students who will follow him at Harker.
This article originally appeared in the summer 2014 Harker Quarterly.
Grade 1 students recently completed their annual community service project for the Humane Society of Silicon Valley. The class worked to improve the lives of the shelter’s displaced rabbits, dogs and cats by collecting monetary donations, as well as buying needed supplies and making toys for the animals.
“It was pretty sweet to get Ziploc bags filled with dollar bills and coins. Every bit made a difference. … We also collected over 50 bags of food, toys, rabbit hay, treats, collars, leashes, blankets, sheets and towels. We also raised over $1,250. A new record!” reported Cindy Proctor, a grade 1 homeroom teacher who helped oversee the project.
To learn as much as possible about the Humane Society – an 80-year-old independent, nonprofit animal shelter – the children toured the Silicon Valley facility. Following the fun and informative outing, the students decorated a bulletin board with photos of themselves and their animal friends. They also made pet blankets and toys for donation. Parents played a role as well, as the children were encouraged to earn extra money for the Humane Society by doing small jobs around the house.
This year, enough donations were collected at the upper school’s annual blood drive to save up to 81 lives, according to Sabrina Sidhu, grade 11, who serves as president of Harker’s Red Cross Club, which organized the recent drive.
“By the end of the day, we had collected 27 units of blood, which went to the American Red Cross,” she said. “I’m glad that so many people were interested in donating. Unfortunately, a large portion of potential donors were turned away because their hemoglobin levels were not high enough. Regardless, I was really happy with the way that everything came together. It was heartwarming to see how excited all of the donors were to have the chance to help out someone in need.”
Harker students, faculty and staff members united to give blood, which was distributed to local hospitals within the required 72 hours. According to Red Cross statistics, every donated unit can save up to three lives. Every two seconds, a patient relies on blood and platelet donors for help.
The Red Cross is the largest single supplier of blood in the United States, collecting and processing more than 40 percent of the nation’s blood supply and distributing it to some 3,000 hospitals and transfusion centers nationwide.
This story originally appeared in the spring 2014 Harker Quarterly.
The beginning of March officially heralded Jump Rope for Heart season at the lower school. On March 7, K-5 students took to the blacktop in an annual effort to raise money for the American Heart Association.
Students had been collecting donation pledges for some time, and spent the day on a variety of stations set up to celebrate their efforts. They had a field day jumping rope, high jumping onto soft mats, doing the limbo, leaping over makeshift hurdles, crawling through obstacle courses, shooting baskets and participating in other fun activities. Some teachers got in on the action, too, by helping to turn a rope, supervise the jumpers for a class period and jumping alongside them.
Donations were still rolling in after the jumping activities ended. As of press time, $4,012 had been raised, with Rohan Gorti, grade 3, responsible for $1,610 raised in online donations.
This story originally appeared in the spring 2014 Harker Quarterly.
The fifth-annual Kicks Against Cancer boys and girls varsity soccer games raised more than $5,000 for children who attend Camp Okizu, a camp for cancer patients and their families.
“Camp Okizu provides peer support, respite, mentoring and recreational programs to meet the needs of all members of families affected by childhood cancer. The amount raised this year will help send five children to camp this summer,” reported Dan Molin, upper school athletic director.
This year’s fundraising efforts included a bake sale and T-shirt sale (the $12 T-shirts served as tickets to the games). The soccer teams also used long lunch periods leading up to the games as an opportunity to sell beanies, full-sleeve purple shirts, visors, bracelets and pens. Donations also were accepted during lunch periods.
As in previous years, faculty and staff were invited to pledge money for the number of goals the teams scored. There was even a silly half-time “butts-up” game in which students paid money to try and kick a ball at their favorite teacher’s backside. Game officials also donated their fees to the cause by officiating the games pro-bono.
Boys varsity defeated Pinewood 6-0 and girls varsity won in another 6-0 shutout over Summit Prep.
To donate directly to Camp Okizu, visit www.okizu.org.
This story originally appeared in the spring 2014 Harker Quarterly.
The annual Pajama Day assembly on Jan. 17 was special for the Eagle Buddies of grades 3 and 10, who met at the lower school gym and shared some of their favorite books with one another. It was also a special day for Rishi Narain, grade 10, who started Harker’s pajama program while he was a student at the lower school.
The program collects and distributes pajamas, books and other goods to underprivileged children all around the world.
The Eagle Buddies program was started during the 2010-11 school year as a means of establishing a bond between the students of the lower and upper schools. The program matches up grade 3 students with grade 10 students, who then meet periodically until the sophomores graduate and the third graders move on to the middle school.
This story originally appeared in the spring 2014 Harker Quarterly.
In the fall, Sidhart Krishnamurthi, grade 11, launched a fundraiser for The Khaled Hosseini Foundation, which raised more than $2,000 to help build a refugee shelter for a family living in Afghanistan.
Krishnamurthi said that he got the idea to do the fundraiser in April 2012 after reading the novel “The Kite Runner” by author Khaled Hosseini (Haris, grade 7; Farah, grade 5).
“The plight of the people in Afghanistan as described in the novel really touched me, and I wanted to somehow support the cause of rebuilding futures for families torn by war, poverty and unimaginable living conditions,” wrote Krishnamurthi.
He then explained that he set a fundraising goal of $2,000 – enough to build a shelter for a refugee family of six. With assistance from the foundation, he was able to make a plan to accomplish the mission through fundraising efforts at Harker.
Krishnamurthi’s parents generously donated funds and he also raised money through a club called Interact, a youth rotary club. He assembled the goody bags with candy and bookmarks handmade by Afghan women in refugee camps in Pakistan (provided by the foundation). His book sales then attracted the attention of the administrators at Harker, facilitating a visit from Hosseini to speak about his books and the foundation.
“Through this experience, I have learned that my life is privileged compared to most people in the world. It really changed me by helping and supporting families facing dire living situations. It also made me realize that people are genuinely kind-natured and willing to help others in difficult situations,” Krishnamurthi.
This story originally appeared in the spring 2014 Harker Quarterly.
Senior Alicia Clark was awarded Harker’s Community Service Spotlight Award at a recent Monday morning school meeting. At the gathering, she received a $200 check from the Harker Upper School Community Service Program, which she in turn donated to the Ronald McDonald House in Palo Alto.
The Community Service Spotlight Awards are sponsored by Harker’s outreach department and take place several times during the school year. They were created to celebrate and honor the outstanding community service completed by upper school students.
In her acceptance speech at the meeting, Clark explained that she began doing community service in grade 7 when she joined the National Charity League, a mother/daughter organization that helps less fortunate community members. Since then she has completed more than 500 volunteer hours with more than 15 organizations.
Clark went onto say that community service can be a great opportunity to spend time with friends and family while also helping others in need. “I can’t imagine my life without all of the organizations I have volunteered with and I really encourage those of you who have not had the opportunity to get involved in the community to start now,” she concluded.
This story was submitted by Harker parent Heather Wardenburg (Frederick, grade 5; Amy ‘13) and originally appeared in the spring 2014 Harker Quarterly.
Hundreds of families’ Thanksgiving feasts were made better by the generosity of the Harker community. The grade 5-sponsored food drive, under the leadership of longtime Harker math teacher Pat Walsh, collected 400 bags of food and $4,332.77 for the St. Justin’s Food Pantry. St. Justin’s Community Outreach Program serves about 2,900 people each month. Harker’s donations helped fill Thanksgiving baskets for 750 families. Walsh, who has been organizing the annual event for 30 years, was thrilled by the donations from the lower school community. “I never cease to be amazed by the generosity of the Harker Community,” he said.
Many thanks to the grade 5 student council for promoting the event, the grade 5 teachers and administration for their support, grade 4-5 division head Kristin Giammona for her help and support, lower school dean Ken Allen for his help in loading, unloading and driving the truck, and the wonderful parent and student volunteers.
Walsh’s enthusiasm and dedication to this program inspired all involved to make the Thanksgiving of these 750 families even better!
This story originally appeared in the spring 2014 Harker Quarterly.
The week after Thanksgiving break, the lower school’s student council sponsored a hot chocolate sale to help raise money to aid relief efforts in the Philippines in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan. Along with the hot chocolate sales, there were some exceptional gifts made to the fund.
“The fundraiser was a huge success. We were able to raise $726 from the hot chocolate sales. In addition, we had some special donations, which brought our grand total to $6,996,” reported Kristin Giammona, elementary division head.
Proceeds from the sale were then combined with funds previously collected by the middle school for donation to Habitat for Humanity to help typhoon victims rebuild their homes and provide clean-up kits. The boost from the middle school drive brought the grand total up to $8,096.12 raised on behalf of the people of the Philippines.