A year 6 class in Christ the King, Bramley, have been raising funds to buy a goat as part of their CAFOD World Gifts Christmas raffle.
Students, families and staff at Christ the King Catholic Primary school have been fundraising for CAFOD since 2012, and have raised a total of £2324.37 to support the work of the overseas development charity.
Year 6 teacher Ms Anne Marie Wade has encouraged her class to think about the positive impact of a World Gift and how it can support families overseas. Over the last few weeks they have sold enough tickets for their festive hamper to raise the £28 needed to purchase a goat.
“The children looked through the whole list of World Gifts on the CAFOD website and settled on a gift called ‘The Goat that Gives’. It has been great to watch them really get involved with the fundraising and also discuss as a class what this gift will mean to families living in the world’s poorest countries, especially those impacted by Coronavirus”, says Ms Wade.
Giving back means a lot to the students, and Ms Wade is very proud of her class “we are really proud of the efforts of Year 6 who have chosen CAFOD as their class charity this year, the families have been really supportive helping to put together the raffle and buying tickets. There is a lot of excitement in the class and we have organised a ‘virtual online visit’ with a member of the CAFOD team to speak directly to the children.” Ms Anne Marie Wade added
Leeds based CAFOD worker, Bronagh Daly, spotted the school’s fundraising post on Twitter, she says “it is so wonderful to hear the Year 6 class and how many tickets they are selling.
“Last week I received letters from the children telling me why they are putting their faith into action by showing support during Advent. In their letters students wrote that at this time, they want to promote justice and peace in their own homes and at school and feel connected to families across the world.
Bronagh continued, “I was so impressed with the care and consideration the Yr 6 group had shown, I asked if they would like a virtual online visit from a member of our school volunteer team. The following week, Aileen our newly qualified schools volunteer arranged with their teacher to speak LIVE via a video call into the classroom. The staff and students were so engaging and interested in our work. It is wonderful to see so much care, especially at a time when we cannot be close there is a real sense of connection from the solidarity shown by Year 6. We look forward to another virtual visit with them in the New Year”
The Goat that Gives World Gift costs £28.00 and provides a family with up to 12 pints of milk per week and it also produces free fertiliser that can help a family grow their own crops.