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Lake classmates offer Darfur aid

Nurse's presentation resonates among students

By Bill Lilley
Beacon Journal staff writer

Published on Monday, Jun 02, 2008

LAKE TWP.: For nearly two decades as a registered nurse, Kim Nicholson worked to save lives — one hospital patient at a time.

Now she's trying to help save hundreds of thousands by creating awareness of the ongoing genocide in Darfur, the underdeveloped western region of Sudan in Africa.

But Nicholson knew she could only do so much as one voice trying to halt the murders and rapes by the Janjaweed, an armed militia group that specializes in eliminating black Africans in Darfur.

So she developed an hourlong PowerPoint presentation and slide show and raised her own army of Lake High School students with pen, paper and cell phone, looking to change a world nearly 7,000 miles away.

''When I first presented it to the kids, they were stunned,'' Nicholson said. ''Some cried. They all were horrified with what they saw.

''Discussions opened up and kids were coming up to me afterwards and were telling me they were going to do something.''

Nicholson and Leslie Smith, who teaches 20th-century American history to sophomores at Lake, were overwhelmed by the response from the students.

''I have to admit that I was a little surprised when we had 42 kids fill up the room for the first meeting in mid-April,'' Smith said.

The Lake students who saw the presentation did more than just talk. They encouraged teachers in classes outside government and history to host Nicholson.

Ultimately, Nicholson gave her presentation to 26 classes at Lake High, directly reaching more than 500 students with her emotional show.

Sophomore Ashley Holland created the Dollar Donation Drive, in which a student writes his name on a 4-inch-by-6-inch map of Africa and affixes it to a wall in the Lake High commons.

Hundreds of autographed maps grace the wall. More than $150 was raised the first day and more than $400 has been raised so far.

''It was amazing how many kids donated, especially the first day,'' Holland said. ''But what really made me feel great was, there were kids giving $30 and $40 and not even wanting to have their name listed because, they told me, 'It's not about getting our name on the wall; it's about helping people.' ''

Sophomore Ashley Cuthbert organized a call-athon on May 21. A dozen students stayed after school for an hour and used cell phones to make 140 calls to a genocide line that got routed to the White House. Other students made hundreds of calls from home.

''The calls got routed to the White House and the receptionists at the White House were frustrated,'' Holland said. ''They couldn't believe they were getting so many calls in one hour.''

Smith said the White House averages about 15 calls a day concerning Darfur.

''They got 10 times that in one hour just from students at Lake,'' she said. ''It blew them away.''

Sophomore Kelly McKenney organized a barefoot walk along the path by the stadium May 24. With 27 barefoot walkers, it raised awareness and $100 in donations.

Smith used the school's annual American History Idol assembly to raise money for the cause by accepting a dollar donation for admission to the lip-synch show on May 19.

The donations were sent to Doctors Without Borders, a nonprofit organization that provides medical care to civilians in war zones.

This summer, there will be a booth at the Hartville Flea Market where petition signatures will be collected to protest the situation in Darfur. Sophomores David Henry and Nichole Marino organized a rotation of 24 volunteers to staff the booth.

 

''I was thrilled so many kids would give up part of their summer vacation to help out,'' Henry said.

The response from and action by the Lake students have inspired Nicholson, whose son Billy and daughter Micki graduated from Lake, to take her slide show on the road.

''I'd love to talk to any group that wants to know more about this modern-day Holocaust,'' she said. ''I desperately want to keep reaching people — VFW groups, neighborhood groups, church groups and any other group that wants to make a difference.

''I was overwhelmed with what happened at Lake High School. . . . They responded beautifully and the people of Darfur, especially the children, have a better chance of survival today.''

Nicholson can be reached by e-mail at kknicholson4@yahoo.com for information about the free presentation.

Bill Lilley can be reached at 330-996-3811 or blilley@thebeaconjournal.com.

 

LAKE TWP.: For nearly two decades as a registered nurse, Kim Nicholson worked to save lives — one hospital patient at a time.

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