Yes You Can: the Power of Teens

By Michele Brannon Hamilton

Sometimes the world seems like such a big place, and you wonder how to make a difference. What can one person possibly do?

But you can make a difference. Every big movement starts with the dream of one person. Every change starts small and grows with the help of people like you.

The Teen Team

Eighteen teenagers in Ontario, Canada decided that they could make a difference. Together with three teachers, they raised enough money to build the foundation for a school in Kenya, Africa. They even bought their own plane tickets!

Then they set out for Masai Mara, Kenya to help build a school from the ground up. A Canadian television station, CTV, produced a documentary following their journey called Kenya Build It?

Many people wondered when they got there if they could do it. Apparently, they could. The work was hard and the workers were young, but they did it. The teens, mostly girls, were as young as 15. Some had just started high school.  Others were finishing, but they all had one thing in common – they knew they could make a difference.

The Foundation of a Dream

In the heat and rain, the students and teachers dug a large trench using hand tools. Then they used bricks and sand to build a foundation by hand. They labored with love until the time came to return to Canada.

Another group took over the project when the foundation was done. Today, a beautiful new school stands where there was dirt one year ago, and lives are now changed forever. Teenagers like you gave the gift of hope to children who had nothing. The Canadian group wasn’t there when the school was finished, but they knew they laid the foundation for the future of other young people.

The Children of Kenya

Many children in Kenya can’t afford to go to school or the schools are too far away. According to freethechildren.com, half of Kenya’s population lives below poverty. The average person only lives 45 years.

The Project

Organizations like Free the Children help children in poor regions like Masai Mara, Kenya by teaming up with schools in nations like ours. Together they raise the money and materials needed to help educate children. Free the Children’s slogan is Children Helping Children Through Education. It costs $6500 to build a one-room classroom in Masai Mara but there are many smaller ways to help. For example, $20 buys school supplies and a backpack for one child. $50 buys a goat for a family. There is a chart found at the freethechildren.com site which shows the items and prices to supply a school in the area.

You Can Make a Difference

You don’t have to travel across the world to make a difference. You can help people in your own country. Give your time to a charity or to someone who needs your assistance. Or join a world wide organization like Free the Children. Craig Kielburger was just 12 years old when he started Free the Children with a group of his friends. Today, over one million young people are helping him change the world!

Resources

Check out these websites and see how you can help someone today.

http://www.leaderstoday.com This is a youth leadership website.

http://www.volunteernow.ca This is a website about volunteering.

http://www.freethechildren.com This is the website for Free the Children.