An eighth-grader reflects on how a group of teens at school helped to change the world.

At my community day school in Palo Alto, California, there's a tradition each year for the seventh-grade class: The Philanthropy Project. The point of the project is to practice the Jewish value of giving to the world. I first heard about it through a school e-mail the summer before seventh grade. A student's parent described how the whole seventh grade gave up their b'nei mitzvah money and donated it to a philanthropy fund. Each student in the class chose an organization with a particular cause, and then gave a speech to persuade his or her peers to give generously to that cause. It was then up to the class to decide how much money to give to each organization.

I was reminded of the project later when I overheard seventh graders talking about their different organizations and causes. One student talked about Heifer International, another student mentioned Pets in Need, and it sounded interesting. However, I was unfamiliar with the term "philanthropy" and giving up bar mitzvah money was definitely not a welcome idea. I was looking for cash so I could buy that mini refrigerator I wanted for my tree house and maybe a cell phone. It wasn't until later, when I truly understood what the project was about, that I began to get excited.

Picking a cause. During the first week of class, our teacher, Sue Schwartzman, presented the idea of donating our bnei mitzvah money to the philanthropy project, and asked if we wanted to take on the task. We did. For my personal project, I chose to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, since my grandparents on my mother's side had both died of Leukemia. This charity was dedicated to helping other families affected like mine by finding a cure for leukemia, lymphoma, myeloma and other blood-related cancers. I first learned about the Society from my grandfather after he was diagnosed with Acute Myelocytic Leukemia or AML. I scheduled an interview with David Kasama, the campaign manager of the San Jose Chapter of the Society.

David was a great help to me when it came to collecting information and diagrams for my persuasive essay and presentation. During our meeting, he gave me logo tee shirts, hats, balloons, posters and other promotional materials, as well as informational video tapes of victim's stories. These, in particular, were really compelling and sometimes disturbing. The videos provided scary statistics such as: Every hour, someone will die of leukemia in the United States; also, leukemia is the leading cause of death among children under age 15. I was shocked and almost didn't want to believe the facts because they were so terrifying.

The big presentation. When it came to the presentation, I made a large display board and report showing how much of the Society's money goes to overhead and program services, a description of their events, facts about the problem, frightening statistics, and a persuasive essay to my classmates about why they should give money to my charity. My fellow students seemed to feel the same shock that I did after they heard the statistics, and sympathized with the grief felt by the families who suffered and hoped for a cure.

It was also interesting to hear about my classmates' organizations. Because of their presentations, I am now much more aware of the homelessness issue and what people with cancer go through. I am also aware of how ordinary people can help animals, as well as how animals can help people. The philanthropy project has taught me all sorts of ways to help fix the world as well. I can volunteer at offices, help stray or abused cats or even walk a few miles in the name of a cure.

We raised serious cash. Our class raised over $42,000 altogether! When my class was told this, we were shocked and extremely proud. Each student rated each organization on a scale of one to 10. Then the total points were added for each charity and percentages of the total money raised were distributed among the charities. My organization received $1,223.97 I was thrilled considering only six out of 29 charities were given over $1,000. Most of the money went to a variety of cancer research foundations, Jewish organizations, animal rescue and support groups, and food and hunger projects.

Looking back on this experience, I feel a sense of accomplishment and partnership with my classmates. And for me, it won't end there. In fact, I'm planning to participate in the next "Light the Night" walk for the Society. During this walk, you are given a red or white balloon that lights up and flashes. White balloons are for cancer survivors or patients, and red are for supporters or other participants. The sponsored participants pay admission and solicit donations from friends, family and others prior to the event and then march the streets for several miles of a downtown area in support and hope for a cure. I like knowing that teens can definitely make a difference and wish more schools around the world did projects like this.

Jeff C. has eight years experience in acting/ theatre and enjoys all sorts of sports which include soccer, tennis, biking and surfing. In his free time, Jeff enjoys drawing or sketching. He is happy to share the secrets of his philanthropy project and hopes many will follow in his school's footsteps.