French Club makes immense impact with donations to Haiti

Teagan Andrews, Copy Editor

Infographic by Teagan Andrews

French Club is doing a fundraiser that is sending shoes to a little town in Haiti called Bois Tombé. The shoes are being donated due to children and even adults not having shoes that cover their toes because most walk around barefoot all the time.

On Jan. 29, the French club voiced an opinion about donating shoes to a little town. French teacher Madame Jackie Parr,  is friends with a Dr. Rosalie Perpich that works with an organization whom helps the people and economy of this town, as well as working locally at Stillwater Family Dental.

“Madame Parr is friends with a woman that is a part of a organization that works with this town in Haiti and she said she really needs shoes to send there and we thought that it’s a good cause and we wanted to help out,” Junior Katie Kelzenberg said.

Bois Tombé is a little town in the southern region of Haiti, just off the coast in the mountains, with about 2,500 people living there. In French, which the habitants still speak today, stands for fallen woods.

“Bois Tombe is a small, dispersed town with 2,500 inhabitants with a lack of basic infrastructure, including educational facilities,” EVA studio said. EVA stands for Emergent Vernacular Architecture. They are in the process of building a school for the children of Bois Tombé.

When the French club collected the shoes from students at school they collected all sorts of sizes from children to adult.

“They [the shoes] should be sent in the next week or so. No one in French club is going to Haiti. But Madame’s friend is going. And she is bringing the shoes,” Kelzenberg said.

Last year French club also collected books to send to the same town in Haiti.

“Last year we sent books to this same town because they needed books in French to help build their schools library,” Kelzenberg said.

As a club, we are happy to do this shoe drive.

— Madame Jackie Parr

“We saw a newsletter sent out by Stillwater Family Dental in January that asked patients to donate shoes for Dr. Perpich’s upcoming trip to Haiti. This is the same school we donated books to last year so we wanted to get involved again this year,” Parr said. Dr. Perpich is apart of a crew that helps out the local town Bois Tombé and continues to do so by having patients help out in the local community, French club does so as well.

French club does a community service project each year. Last year was books to this same community, now they did shoes. French club can help out in ways that can be used with the French language.

“As a club, we are happy to do this shoe drive. It feels good to know you can do something that helps others,” Parr said.

French club is a great way for students that take French at school to get involved even with the community through the French language.