4th Graders – Pennies for Peace

Welcome to Hillcrest's 4th grade community outreach service project, Pennies for Peace. Pennies for Peace is a service-learning program designed to broaden our cultural horizons while teaching us about our capacities as philanthropists – one penny at a time.

Pennies for Peace is a program of the Central Asia Institute (CAI), founded by Greg Mortenson – author of Three Cups of Tea. CAI is a nonprofit organization that promotes and provides community-based education and literacy programs, especially for girls, in remote mountain regions of Central Asia. Founded in 1996, CAI has built, to date, nearly 100 schools in Afghanistan and Pakistan, which serve more than 28,000 students – over 14,000 of whom are girls. The program's goals are to empower communities in remote regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan through education. The opportunity for an education gives children a chance to break the cycle of poverty, terrorism, and war.

How can a penny bring peace? It doesn’t buy much in our community. However, in the villages of Pakistan and Afghanistan, a penny can buy a pencil, start an education, and transform a life. In a region where terrorist organizations recruit uneducated, illiterate children, a pencil can empower a child to read, write, and learn.

• 1 penny = a pencil
• 2-3 pennies = an eraser
• 15 pennies = one notebook
• $20 = one child’s school supplies for one year
• $50 = one treadle sewing machine and supplies
• $100 = maternal healthcare supplies for one year
• $300 = one advanced student’s annual scholarship
• $600 = one teacher’s annual salary
• $5,000 = support for existing school for one year
• $50,000 = one school building and support for up to five years

The program will run Feb 7th-April 17th. Penny collection containers are located in the main hallway entrance at school, and each classroom. In addition to pennies we love nickels, dimes and quarters too!