Iroquois Read-A-Thon Donates Books To Refugees

Every March, Grand Rapids Christian Elementary School Iroquois Campus students participate in a read-a-thon. But, this is no ordinary read-a-thon.

"We love books. We need books. Refugees need books too," says Jessie Connell, Iroquois Preschool Teacher, and chair of the school's service-learning committee. Mrs. Connell oversees the annual Iroquois Kakuma Read-a-Thon with a goal to purchase books for children of the Kakuma Refugee Camp in Turkana County, Kenya. Partnering with GRCS parent Simon Luk, who grew up in Kakuma, the schools raised over $6,500 last year, enough for the purchase of 573 books.

Kakuma Refugee Camp was established in 1992 in Northwestern Kenya in response to the migration of the "Lost Boys of Sudan," approximately 20,000 boys who fled Sudan during that country's second civil war. Luk spent his childhood in the camp.

"What I went through ... it was bad," he says. Though the overflowing refugee camp—with a population of over 58,000 in 2014—had schools and teachers for the children, Luk notes that books were scarce, and educators lacked proper training. Many of the schools even went without adequate facilities and equipment, like simple tables and chairs.

Luk emigrated to the United States sixteen years ago with his eldest son, Isaiah, and settled in Grand Rapids, MI. Isaiah began kindergarten in 2010 at the Iroquois Campus (he is now a junior at GRCHS). Over the years, Luk began to consider how he and the GRCS community might be able to give back to the thousands of children still living and learning in Kakuma.

In 2018, Luk approached then-Iroquois Principal Mark Krommendyk about the possibility of raising funds for the purchase of books in the camp, and the Kakuma Book Project was born. Working with Connell, Luk attended the school's chapel to speak to Iroquois students about his experience and the need for books for these refugee children. 

"Most of these kids might not know what a refugee is," says Connell, who helped explain the concept through the use of age-appropriate stories on the topic. That first year, students raised about $2,000, a total that amounted to approximately 200 books for students in Kakuma. The fundraising efforts have expanded to other GRCS campuses as well. The high school and middle school fundraisers for Kakuma also met their goals of raising funds necessary to buy benches and chairs for refugee students.

Luk was overjoyed about giving back to the refugee camp housing thousands displaced by the violence and conflict in South Sudan because he believes that education is the best method for positive change. "That is the hope I have for South Sudan," he says.

Last summer, Isaiah and his dad, Simon, took a trip back to Kenya in Africa, to the refugee camp that Simon and many others live while they were waiting and hoping for a home to hand-deliver the donations to the refugee camp. "The outcome last year was amazing. We drove for eleven hours to Kakuma, in northern Kenya," says Luk. "We delivered books and sports jerseys from the middle and high schools. The relentless commitment and exceptional generosity of the GRCS community have painted a lasting success in Kakuma. Let's hold Kakuma deep in our hearts and prayers and do our best to shine the light of Christ in Kakuma through books."

Video: Importance of Education in Kakuma

Video: A Visit to Kakuma

Donate to the Read-A-Thon

Watch a Message from Isaiah to the Iroquois Students