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Middle School Students Reaching Out

On March 11th, Breakwater's Middle School students met with Hashim Allah, local poet, President of Amistad Arts, and civic minded citizen, to discuss the building and donation of six bookshelves full of books to the children living at the Leeds Group Home, just north of Lewiston.

The students got a lesson in civic duty and giving. In preparation for the meeting they created a detailed questionnaire for the children ages 6 to sixteen. They asked questions about their interests and hobbies, as well as color preferences and what kinds of books they like. With Hashim’s encouragement, our students have decided to go to the group home to interview the students in person, to find out more about them and what their interests are. They decided that it would be much easier to explain the bookshelves and what their plans are in person. The exchange will also build a relationship between the two groups. Through this face-to-face process the children hope to be able to custom make the project to really fit the children’s likes and needs.

Once the bookshelves are completed and the Breakwater students have raised enough money to outfit the shelves with quality books, they plan to return to Leeds and present them in person. Everyone involved is so excited about this project. One middle school student expressed her enthusiasm by saying, "I'm really glad that Hashim came to talk with us. The care and respect for children in poverty seems to have gone down, so I think that making these bookshelves for the kids who really need them is what we all should be doing."

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