Harker students have yet again stepped up to help others who most need it. Starting in late May, the MS started collecting funds to support relief efforts in China and Myanmar. All funds collected were donated to the International Red Cross. These two tragic disasters have affected countless families around the globe and the school provided some moral support to our Chinese sister school, the Shanghai World Foreign Language Middle School, sending a card of sympathy for those who have families in the affected areas.
Gr. 7 and 8 student council members set out to beautify Vasona Park in April. The half dozen students were participating in a beautification day at the Los Gatos park and spent their time raking leaves, pulling weeds and cleaning bulletin boards.
The middle school student council leads dozens of community service activities throughout the year.
After the lower school art exhibition closed with the school year, many pieces were selected to move on for display at the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital (LPCH) at Stanford University.
The arrangement came about when art teacher Eric Hoffman, intent on getting a public showing, asked his students for suggestions on where they could exhibit. Said Hoffman, “One of my students, Matthew Ho, Gr. 5, suggested a hospital and I thought, ‘what a great idea!’ Since we already have an association with Stanford it seemed only natural to ask them if they were interested.
“I think our students do great work and something I have always wanted to do is get the work out into the public, so that people can see how great our children are and certainly to promote the school and our programs. That is just a really positive thing to do,” Hoffman said. “My students are very excited about it.”
Hoffman made his first inquiry before Christmas, and the process was nearly completed in May. “We had an initial meeting, where we went to visit the hospital,” said Hoffman. “We met with their staff and talked about the possibility of having an exhibition there. We had also taken a collection of work, paintings, drawings, prints and collages that had already been completed. After the initial meeting, I invited them to come to Bucknall and view the art around campus. I had Chef Dave Hendricks prepare a special lunch for them which was quite wonderful,” Hoffman noted.
“They brought in their specialist, Ted Cohen, one of the leading exhibition designers in the country and somebody I had met when I was going through graduate school,” said Hoffman. “He designs exhibitions for a number of museums and galleries in the area and across the United States as well. It was very nice to know he was in charge.”
The process is underway for about 50 pieces to go on display, and Hoffman and Cohen will decide on the pieces to be used. Three-dimensional art will go in the hospital art display cases on the ground floor of the hospital and there will be framed art across the street in the outpatient clinic in waiting rooms and corridors. The exhibition should be in place by the end of the year, said Susan Gray, administrative project manager at the hospital.
“The goal is simply to make another connection to our community and share the talents of other children with our patients and families,” Gray said. “The level of talent, color, imaginative design, whimsy and nature themes all resonated with us and our art committee’s goals.”
The display will rotate pieces after about six months, Hoffman said. Although the initial plan is to run the exhibition for a year, “we are hoping for a long-lasting association.”
“As Sue Bass (art teacher), Jamie Fung (art assistant) and I toured the LPCH facility, you could really see how the artwork brightened people’s lives. It is a stressful time for a lot of families, especially at a children’s hospital. The artwork helps put a little smile on their faces, somehow,” Hoffman said. “We really felt that it was a good thing to do. It is about cheering up somebody’s life, and for our students it is, number one, a great way for them to give back to the community.”
Tanya Schmidt (’08) and her sister, Sylvia (’06) – Team Lokahi – recently completed the two-day Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in San Francisco July 12-13, raising over $6,000 in donations of the total $7.9 million raised over the weekend.
“I want to thank each one of you for supporting us,” said Tanya, who explained that their team name means “unity” and “togetherness” in Hawaiian. “No matter what difficulties you face in life, we believe that if you have someone supporting and encouraging you along the way, you can make it through, so we decided to help fight the battle against cancer together.”
The event was a marathon and a half – 39.3 miles – divided up with 26.2 miles on the first day, and 13.1 miles on the second – that started in San Francisco, crossed the Golden Gate Bridge into Marin County, and ended up in Crissy Fields to spend where participants spent the night in tents. The second day’s route wound through San Francisco and finished back where the walk started in Golden Gate Park. Tanya recounts her experience:
“By the end of the second day, my legs and feet hurt, but the pain I felt is nothing compared to the pain that the families affected by cancer feel every day. As one of the posters along the route said, ‘Blisters don’t need chemo.’ On the second day of our walk, after climbing up and down some brutal San Francisco hills, we passed by the San Francisco Avon Medical Breast Center, the site where much of the money I have raised will go to directly help members of our local communities. It was very touching to see the nurses and patients line up along the sidewalk outside of the medical center to cheer us on with high fives and many heartfelt thank yous. Your support helped me get there, and I am so grateful and appreciative.
“As I crossed the finish line arm in arm with an Irish lady who I had just met a couple hours earlier, I realized my favorite part of the weekend: the feeling that no matter what struggles you encounter in life, you never have to be alone. The statistics are sad. Every three minutes, another woman is diagnosed with breast cancer, and every 14 minutes, breast cancer takes the life of another person. During the time that I spent walking this weekend, the lives of 670 women have been forever changed with the news that they have breast cancer. With the support of people like you, however, we can change the statistics for the better. Together, we can draw strength from hope, and together, we can cure cancer.” Both dedicated their efforts this year to the family of John Near, a 30-year Harker history teacher who is battling colon cancer.
Donations may still be made to the walk through the Schmidt sisters’ team or individual sites:
The Avon Foundation, a 501(c)(3) public charity, was founded in 1955 to improve the lives of women and their families, and Avon philanthropic programs worldwide have raised and awarded more than $500 million. Now past the half entury milestone, the Avon Foundation brings this mission to life through two key areas: breast cancer and domestic violence. The Avon Breast Cancer Crusade launched in 1992, and Avon breast cancer programs in some 50 countries support advancing access to care and finding a cure for breast cancer, with a focus on the medically underserved. Funding is awarded to beneficiaries ranging from leading cancer centers to community-based breast health programs for awareness and education; screening and diagnosis; access to treatment; support services; and scientific research. Fundraising is through a variety of “pink ribbon” products, events, races and walks. The largest is the U.S. Avon Walk for Breast Cancer series, which began in 2003. For more information on the Avon Foundation visit http://www.avonfoundation.org/.