Amazing Kids Feature: Students from Clinton Middle School

May 12

Every month we profile an Amazing Kid who has gone above and beyond to support Water for South Sudan (WFSS). This month was a little different. We sat down with several seventh-grade students at Clinton Middle School in Clinton, NY, and their English Language Arts teacher, Sarah Gaetano. Ms. Gaetano has been using A Long Walk to Water (ALWTW) by Linda Sue Park, the young adult novel that tells the life story of WFSS founder Salva Dut, in her curriculum for the past eight years. She and her students have previously fundraised for WFSS, and this year’s class was no different. Ms. Gaetano recalls that this years’ efforts were spearheaded by a particular student who asked: “What can we do?”

Around the same time as their ALWTW study, students were also reading Wishtree by Katherine Applegate. The novel tells the story of a “wishtree” named Red. People write their wishes on pieces of cloth and tie them to Red's branches. Students wondered what would happen if they combined both novel studies into a fundraising campaign. What if they made their own wishtree and asked the Clinton community to donate to WFSS for every wish? The idea took off. All ninety-six seventh graders banded together, emailing every single teacher in every school in their district. They reached out to students in other grades too and even worked with the town library, where patrons could drop their wishes in a box. To stay organized, students relied on a whiteboard, where they wrote a to-do list and crossed items off one by one. Students then naturally divided up their tasks and got to work. Some students laminated wishes, some helped create a project timeline, and others worked on building a project website. Although the students said that it was sometimes hard to stay focused on this long-term project, in the end, they were grateful they remained committed.

Nearly 300 wishes were tied to a tree on the Clinton Middle School property, and a ribbon cutting ceremony recently occurred on May 7th. The tree was also commemorated with a plaque made by a Clinton art teacher. The Clinton community ended up raising over $500, more than enough to cover the cost of one hygiene training in South Sudan. Students then decided that they wanted their wishtree to become a yearly tradition. Ms. Gaetano reflected, “It was just an outpouring of community. What I kept hearing from the adults, what everyone said, was that they were so thankful to see people coming together. People were donating money, and felt like they were getting something in return by having their wishes with everyone else’s.”

When we asked what advice they would give to anyone considering fundraising, the students had a variety of answers. One suggests making sure that people feel excited about donating—people contributed to their wishtree because it was unique. It’s important to think big, chimed in another student, “If we had just kept it to our class, I doubt that it would be as big as it was.” A third student says, “Just do it. There’s not much to lose.” Another said, “Your passion goes a long way.”

Students also discussed their love for ALWTW—they reported enjoying the cliffhangers at the end of certain chapters, their disbelief that it was a true story, and how it helped them learn the power of empathy. Ms. Gaetano said she was inspired by Salva’s persistence, and how he never lost sight of where he came from.

Overall, everyone found the experience to be rewarding. Whether it was spreading the news to other members of the school community, or actually hanging the wishes on the tree, all of the students interviewed were proud of their efforts.

Every day, we’re grateful for Amazing Kids like the Clinton Middle School students—young people who step up to make a life-changing difference for South Sudan’s most vulnerable communities. Thank you for inspiring us and making our work possible! We can’t wait to see what you’ll do next.