14 - The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday December 2, 2006 www.oakvillebeaver.com CE T ARANit N GIAY CLE r sell t! Rei TO th nt EN e'd ran cou INV W tha ALL AT WHOLESALE PRICES SAVE 70% UP TO Mississauga's Best Kept Secret The Finest... · Gift Baskets · Chocolate Truffles · Gourmet Food · Specialty Coffee & Tea · Candles & Glassware · Baby & Bath Products · Baskets, Ribbon & Bows · Christmas Decorations · Home Décor HUGE Selection of Beautiful Gift Baskets PHOTO COURTESY OF MICHELLE ANDERSON WARMTH OF THE SEASON: Oakville's Herb Goodhoofd plays Santa in 90-degree weather to the delight of the children at Camp Sylvester in St. Lucia. Music for St. Lucia By Sabrina Byrnes SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER Make Your Own Gift Baskets! Mon. Tues. Wed. Fri.-9-6, Thurs. 9-7, Sat. 10-4 www.gift-pak.com GREAT GIFT IDEAS & STOCKING STUFFERS Especially for the Hard-To-Buy-Fors on your list. Get Organized for Christmas! $750 Gift only $499.95 NEED A SPECIAL GIFT IDEA? A $750 KOMANDOR Gift Certificate in a special gift box. Shipped direct to you in 2 days!* SAVE 33%! Closet organizers, custom sliding doors, home offices, storage shelving, entertainment units and more! Free In-Home Design and Estimates. 888.669.2093 *Offer valid until December 25th/06. One certificate per www.komandorclosets.com customer. Can be redeemed at any time. Postage included. The second annual fundraising concert for the St. Lucia Learning Project is tonight at Chartwell Baptist Church at 7:30 p.m. The project is going into its fourth straight year and is a program that benefits the children, mothers and teachers who inhabit the little community of Anse La Verdure, population 250. "We respect these children, we respect that community and we respect their culture," said Michelle Anderson Executive Director for the St. Lucia Learning Project and member of Chartwell Baptist Church. The St. Lucia Learning Project is built up of three components: Camp Sylvester, Canaries Infant School and a Women's Mentoring program. Camp Sylvester is a children's day camp that runs for four weeks in the summer. The camp comprises of activities such as music and drama, journal writing, crafts, small group time, field trips, English and math, life skills training, all which aid the improvement in the children's learning, selfesteem and well-being. The older youth who attend learn to become Junior Leaders, where they are given leadership training, experience in the kitchen, first-aid and water safety training and work with the volunteers to run the program. The camp is run out of a home that has belonged to Anderson's family in St. Lucia for many years, with a tremendous amount of support from Sandra, her housekeeper. Sandra lives in the home and cooks for the campers and is a grandmother to eight of the children. Anderson said the camp would not have been possible without the assistance of Sandra. Anderson started the St. Lucia Learning Project after being influ- enced by her father who had worked all over the world with artificial limb camps and had spent some time herself in Trinidad, working at an orphanage. She currently works as a Kindergarten teacher at Clarkson Co-op School. Camp Sylvester, with the help of volunteers, had 42 registered children it worked with this year, which has grown from the 30 children it had in its first year. The campers start their day with breakfast and then participate in exercises. Every week there is a different theme and each day has a specific topic to go with that theme. One topic for instance was "I'm Special," for which they created paper dolls to portray themselves and participated in role playing and journal writing on the subject. The volunteers really emphasize to the children that they are indeed special and teach them respect and give them respect in return, which they are not accustomed to. "We give these children value. We are not only telling them, but we're showing them every day that they are worth it," Anderson said. "Their opinions are not sought. Their parents don't have time," said Anderson claiming the children in St. Lucia are not listened to by their parents, there is no time for the parents to sit and nurture their children. "They love their children, they don't have that kind of time," she said. Anderson stated that these children in rural areas don't get the chance to be part of special things. "The world passes them by on that road, and their days are spent watching it go by." The children who attend the camp are able to wear Camp Sylvester t-shirts and hats. "They wear those with pride, to be a part of something," Anderson said. The camp's executive director said there is a significant difference in the children after attending the camp. She said they gain confidence, are more co-operative at home and are better listeners. Anderson said the teachers see in these children a huge willingness to try, which is a huge step for a lot of these kids. The children go on field trips, which are very beneficial to them because they get a chance to experience more of their environment. They recently experienced a boat cruise donated by Mango Tango, a tour boat company, which allowed them to see their island from a distance. The camp holds its own Olympics, complete with an opening ceremony, and the children participate in games like the "chicken toss." At the end of four weeks the campers have a graduation and each camper is given items such as school supplies, books, towels, and next year Anderson is hoping to give each child a pillow and pillow case. Anderson said the volunteers who spend time with these children are never the same and recalled one volunteer who was surprised at the impact it would have when one child at the graduation this year hugged her and said "Thank you." The children look forward to attending Camp Sylvester because there is often not a lot in their lives, Anderson said. The children are told by the volunteers what they can do, instead of what they can't do. "Our mission is to help them realize their potential," said Anderson. Canaries Infant School is a school in the community that used to be one of the lowest schools in term of academic test scores. Slowly that is changing. "Teachers keep telling us chil See Teaching page 17