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WOSS students fundraising for mission next March Break by Dominik Kurek Oakville Beaver Staff 9 | Thursday, April 4, 2013 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com Many high schools prepare a trip abroad for their students on March Break. White Oaks Secondary School is taking the idea further. The high school will take 19 of its students on a Free the Children mission trip to Ecuador next March Break to help build a school. "I really liked this and I wanted to get the kids to experience it," said organizing teacher Elaine Morton, who has done her own mission trips before. "It's one thing to donate money to a cause overseas, but it's quite another experience to be able to go and see where your money is going." The group of 19 students and three teachers has been working on the trip for approximately a year already and has another year to go. The length of time was required because of the cost of the mission. Each student will have to pay $5,300 and all of them are expected to fundraise their own way. Morton said White Oaks has students who come from all socio-economic backgrounds, some who could afford to pay their own way and others who can't. But, the idea for this trip was to be inclusive to all students. "I wanted to make sure that everybody was able to afford the opportunity because it's a volunteer trip, not just a sight seeing trip," she be able to experience the same thing. "It's great for me to be able to go and do something like this," she said. "But, if I'm able to pass on my love for being able to help other people to the kids, then hopefully they'll be able to spread it in their own community once they get back here as well. I think there's something to be said about actually being able to witness what it's like to make that difference firsthand." Morton and her fellow teachers held meetings for interested students and eventually the group of 19 was formed. The students are doing their own individual fundraising and the group does shared fundraising once a month. This month (March), the group is selling baked goods from Oakville's Cupid's Gourmet Bakery. Morton said many of he students are about halfway in their fundraising goals, which is timely because they are halfway through their two-year fundraising projects. Anyone can support the group's mission via cheque payable to White Oaks Secondary School, Attention Ecuador A group of 19 White Oaks Secondary School students are heading on a Free the Children mission to Project, and bring it to the school or mail it to 1330 Montclair Ecuador, next March Break to build a school. As part of their fundraising efforts, they are having a bake Dr., Oakville, ON, L6H 1Z5. sale, selling cupcakes and cookies from Cupid's Gourmet Bakery. Here, from left, Grade 11 students Imani Stewart, Matthew Gayowski, and Samara Heisz, all 16, with baked goods they picked up. photo by Graham Paine ­ Oakville Beaver (Follow on Twitter @halton_photog) said. "Even though it seems like an insurmountable goal at first -- it is a lot of money to come up with -- you can see that over time you can do it if you push yourself to go for it." The mission trip was devised when Morton and a fellow teacher, Heather Norwood, pitched it to the school. Morton has done international development work since she graduated from university. She did a six-week project in Vanuatu, and then she devised a mission trip with a friend to Guyana two years ago over the summer school break. When she returned, she wanted the students to Gluten-free, taste-full. Say hello to our delicious new gluten-free crust. 10A­2460 Neyagawa Blvd. OAKVILLE 107­321 Cornwall Road OAKVILLE 3­3047 Appleby Line BURLINGTON GLUCKSTEINHOME BEST SALE EVER! 20%+20%off +NO TAX BURLINGTON 2269 FAIRVIEW STREET, BURLINGTON · PH. 905-631-6000