Alisha Sabnis
Staff Writer
With the end of school approaching, WA seniors are busy with unique internships and projects. Seniors Janice Huang and Nicole Huang are making a positive difference in the world for their project by raising money to support five Burmese refugee families with homemade pillows and blankets.
“We’ve had pre-existing relationships with the children of these families because we’ve tutored them through our Westford Academy English Literacy Outreach club,” said Janice Huang.
The families are Burmese refugees who have been in America for four to five years. They are currently living in downtown Lowell in small apartments. Janice and Nicole know the children from homework help sessions at Saydanar, an organization where the two volunteer. Based in Lowell, Saydanar provides education to refugee families like the ones the pair are helping.
The project, which officially started on April 6th, was designed for a final involvement after three years of tutoring.
“We greatly enjoy making pillows and blankets. We wanted to make connections with the children of these Burmese families,” said Janice.
The idea was created last year when both Janice and Nicole were juniors on the tennis team. While thinking of gifts for the seniors, the idea of personalized pillows was mentioned. Shortly afterwards, they thought of using this idea for their senior project, and eventually committed to the idea this year.
The seniors are selling plants to earn the money for the cushions. By buying seeds from ParkSeed.com, they are able to plant and grow them for sales. The profit will be used to make the pillows and blankets that will be sent to the families.
This is the first time a project like this has happened at Westford Academy, and it has been a success. Although the making of the blankets is slightly delayed, all of the pillows are completed. Janice and Nicole are planning on delivering the pillows and blankets in early June, and both have expressed their excitement about the final products and their enjoyment of the entire experience.
Physics and Engineering teacher Tim Burns is Janice’s and Nicole’s advisor on this project. He had complete faith in these seniors and this project despite the stresses of time and financial commitment.
“It was a great experience watching the girls work through the process and I am proud of how hard they worked and to see how many people they are going to help. It has been extremely successful.” says Burns.
Both Janice and Nicole believed that this experience has enlightened them to the way that the less fortunate live.
“We’ve gained a greater appreciation for the simple luxuries we have easy access to, and gained greater knowledge of the extreme range of situations of individuals who live even within a close range,” said Nicole Huang.
