Four years ago, the freshman class read the book A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park. The novel shares the story of lost boy Salva Dut, who fled his war-torn country of Sudan in search of a better life. Many years after settling in Rochester, NY, Salva started the nonprofit Water for South Sudan to bring life-changing clean water to remote rural communities in South Sudan.
After finishing the book, our ambitious and caring boys asked Mrs. Sayre if the 9th graders could raise money to help build a well, and that year the freshmen donated a little over $1,000. Since that spring in 2016, more freshman classes have sought to follow their upperclassmen and raise money for a well. $15,000 would achieve that goal, and at the start of this school year, we were still $10,000 away from that number.
Mrs. Sayre asked the 9th graders this year to extend their reach to the entire CBA community. The boys and the community did not disappoint. Administrators, teachers, family, and friends gathered together, and on April 12th, Mrs. Sayre happily announced to the school that we had indeed reached our goal. Because of the amazing generosity of this school community, our seniors can graduate this May knowing that their vision as freshmen has made the world a better place. Thank you, CBA!