Ecuador fundraising well underway

Just a few short weeks after a group of Trinity College School students and teachers returned from their service learning trip to Ecuador, fundraising for this annual initiative is already well underway.

Each December for the past three years, TCS students and teachers have taken part in a service learning trip to Ecuador, specifically to the community of San Miguel. More than $25,000 has been raised since 2009 to fund community initiatives in this developing region. So far, this funding has allowed the School to support the construction of an elementary school, a clean water project, a high school and a playground.

The goal this year is to raise $10,000 to continue our commitment of “adopting a village.” Students this year were inspired to see what fundraising has accomplished in the community of San Miguel and to witness our community’s “money in action,” says chaperone Tom Tansley. “The TCS community should feel very proud to have helped a community in such a sustainable and impactful way.”

On Thursday, January 19th, the group held a special Ecuador day, selling T-shirts, announcing raffle winners and hosting a non-uniform day featuring the colours of the Ecuadorian flag (red, blue and yellow). In addition to the popular “Ecuador Ambassador” parking spot raffle, students also won the chance to skip ahead in the lunch line and at the guild store. Through initiatives like this, about $5,000 of the group’s $10,000 has already been raised. Future fundraising will include bake sales and a concert.

Applications for the December 2012 Ecuador service learning trip will be rolled out after the March Break. Students who are interested in this opportunity can contact Mr. Tansley (ttansley@tcs.on.ca), Mrs. Renée Hillier (rhillier@tcs.on.ca) or Mrs. Kim Vojnov (kvojnov@tcs.on.ca).