February 11, 2009

Boulder Catholic school service project helps Haitians

BOULDER—Sacred Heart of Jesus School, a preschool to eighth grade Catholic school in downtown Boulder, collected 350 water bottles that were sent to Haiti as part of their international service project during Catholic Schools Week, Jan. 25-29.

The students hosted the water bottle drive for the remote town of Thomassique.  Sacred Heart alumna and recent Duke University graduate, Rita Baumgartner, currently living in Thomassique and working at St. Joseph Clinic, is part of a team researching drinking water and sanitation practices in the town.  Each year, an estimated 1.8 million people around the world—more than 90 percent of which are children under 5—die from diseases related to poor water storage practices and insufficient supplies.  The team’s initial findings revealed that safe storage of clean water, using reusable water bottles with tops, is critical in keeping the water free of contaminants.  The relatively simple collection of reusable water bottles, Baumgartner believes, can have a dramatic impact. 

“Those extra water bottles cluttering up your kitchen cupboards in Boulder, can save lives here in Thomassique,” she said in a letter to Sacred Heart of Jesus families.  

Students collected water bottles from the community throughout the week.  Baumgartner’s mother was presented with the bottles after Mass at Sacred Heart of Jesus Church on Jan. 29.  The water bottles have since been sent to Medical Missionaries Inc., the nonprofit organization that built and staffs the clinic in Thomassique.   

Sacred Heart of Jesus School took part in several other planned activities throughout the week that expressed the 2009 theme “Catholic Schools Celebrate Service.”  The school’s observance was part of the annual celebration of the nation’s 7,800 Catholic schools and their contribution to their local communities and beyond. 

The Sacred Heart of Jesus School community believes that development of stewardship, charity and social justice is essential for each child to live a Christian life.  As part of this commitment to helping others, students from preschool through eighth-grade host various service projects throughout the school year that reach people in need on a local, national and international level.