Established in December 2012 with a mandate to make a difference in their community, the local Global Shapers group with 11 members – Global Shapers Georgetown Hub – embarked on the “Headstart Stationery Drive” to collect donations which would supply more than 400 students in Guyana’s hinterland with school supplies for the 2013-2014 academic year.
The Global Shapers Community are a worldwide network of more than 200 city-based “hubs”, developed and led by promising young leaders who want to build on their achievements and entrepreneurial drive to make a positive contribution to their communities.
The deadline for donations was Aug. 28, 2013 and the Georgetown Hub were very successful in securing all school stationery. These included backpacks, notebooks, pencils, crayons, rulers, sharpeners, scissors, erasers, activity books and much more. On Aug. 6, 2013, the team journeyed to hinterland regions where each child received a “core bundle” of a backpack (or pouch), five notebooks, 12 pencils, an eraser, sharpener and ruler.
“From day one, the support we received from both the local and international community was overwhelmingly positive. Within just a month, the Georgetown Shapers were able to launch and fully execute this project– even surpassing our initial targets. This was made possible only because of the people, businesses, and organizations that stepped forward to help, either in the form of donating physical supplies and/or assisting with monetary donations. The generosity and compassion of many made this project a success,” said Dr Rosh Khan, project champion, who spearheaded the project, in an interview with Guyana Times Sunday Magazine.
On September 4, Shapers Ryan Hoppie and Khan travelled into Matthew’s Ridge by plane with 500 pounds of stationery. They held a dynamic session with more than 330 students, who were very grateful to receive the supplies.
After the donation was made to the Matthew’s Ridge Primary School and Pakera Nursery School, the main local contact for this project, Shondel St. Juste, said the community “felt so great about the Global Shapers coming to us.” And added, “I must also say that the parents are so glad about this because it takes a lot from them to buy these school supplies, and now they don’t have to. This school year, some parents even kept their children at home because they just couldn’t afford the stationery. So they are relieved that you brought supplies. Their children are now coming to school and they are grateful. We didn’t get to say thank you enough but we would like to say a public thank you to Rosh Khan, Ryan Hoppie, and all the Global Shapers for what they have done.”
Then on September 6, Shapers Khan, Louisa Mancey, Venus Persaud, and Imarah Radix, travelled overland to Fairview Village, specifically to the Kurupukari Primary School where they had an interactive session with 90 students. The team spoke on the importance of education and had fun playing games with the students.
“These children are so happy. The parents are so happy. We are happy. The whole village is happy right now. I have to say that no one came and did what the Georgetown Shapers team did. We went and we checked and realized no one came and did this like they did. It was so very well-organized and well-represented. It was only them that cared so much to come and do this for us. Thank you so much for all the clothes, even the movies that they brought for us, and all the shoes. People are so happy for everything. May God bless [the Georgetown Shapers]. This good work should be continued, not only at Fairview, but to all villages in Guyana. The Georgetown Shapers are doing the good and right things for people,” the main local contact for this project, Pastor Norbert expressed.
The major donors the team would like to thank are Red BandAid Foundation, Casey Zeman, Scotia Bank, Nigel’s Supermarket, Iwokrama, and the Civil Defence Commission.
Khan noted that the excess stationery supplies would be distributed to other remote communities across Guyana.
Due to the success of this project, the Georgetown Shapers are now planning to make this an annual event, and will support other schools and communities across Guyana.
For more information on this project visit Global Shapers Community – Georgetown Hub on Facebook. (Guyana Times Sunday Magazine)
