Giving Games 2013: Raising South Sudan Community Night

Last year, Patton High School made Service Learning history in Burke County with then launch of The Giving Games, a unique project that rallied our entire school to make a difference to hunger relief efforts after reading the popular novel The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.
In 2013, The Giving Games are back and our school has chosen to read A Long Walk To Water by Linda Sue Park. The novel shares two stories: one of a young refugee fleeing persecution in the war-torn nation of Sudan throughout… Show more the 1980s and 1990s, another of a young girl in modern-day South Sudan whose family struggles to meet basic needs after living amidst conflict for years.
The book is based on true stories: South Sudan became the newest country in the world in 2011, after a 55 year civil war with the north. Today, 70% of people there lack access to clean water, 90% of adults are illiterate, and in rural areas the graduation rate from elementary school is just 2% for boys and 1% for girls.
We invite you to come help us kick off this year's games by attending a special community-wide event on February 19. The evening will feature remarks from Ngor Kur Mayol, a former Lost Boy of Sudan who lost both parents in the civil war and lived for 13 years in refugee camps before coming to the United States in 2001. Ngor will share his experiences and his dream of constructing a permanent, primary school in his village of Aliap in Unity State, South Sudan.
This semester The Giving Games will generate awareness about this new country, and raise funds for the school in Aliap, by partnering with The Any1Can Project, an initiative of Charlotte, NC-based nonprofit Mothering Across Continents. Proceeds from our Feb 19 event will benefit this effort, the community will have a chance to learn about--and participate in!-- the amazing work Patton students are doing to make a difference in the world.
See you on February 19!
The Giving Games Planning Committee

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