About Us

About the Cartus Save the Children Committee

Visit the web pages about our School in Sudan Project on Save the Children's website.

The 125+ member Cartus Save the Children Committee is an employee-initiated group working closely with Save the Children USA. Our committee has 5 goals:

1. To give children a future by sponsoring 100 children and building a school in Sudan by 2010.
2. To advocate on behalf of 1.3 billion people in extreme poverty.
3. To educate about the depth and scope of extreme poverty.
4. To enable people to become involved with even a minimal amount of money and time.
5. To expand perspectives to include international giving, where the need is the greatest due to tens of thousands of people dying daily because they are too poor to sustain themselves.

Our Press Release

Farmington, Michigan—September, 2008. Nearly 20,000 elementary, middle, and high school students in Danbury, Connecticut and Farmington/Farmington Hills, Michigan are joining forces to build PROMISE SCHOOL, a school for children in the African country of Sudan. The two school district communities intend to raise $100,000 to build and staff the school.

The superintendents of the Danbury Public Schools and Farmington Public Schools proudly announce their intention to join forces to build a school in Sudan by the 2010-2011 school year. Dr. Sal Pascarella (Danbury) and Susan Zurvalec (Farmington) indicate they will encourage schools/students/staff to voluntarily conduct fund raisers for the project. The funds raised will be channeled through the non-profit organization, Save the Children, which continues to orchestrate humanitarian projects around the globe.

Over recent years, Danbury High School students have produced two award-winning documentary films related to the genocide in Darfur, Sudan. They have spoken to scores of groups including students on university campuses and have addressed the United States Congress. In February 2006, several students from Danbury visited North Farmington High School when they hosted the real-life hero of “Hotel Rwanda,” Paul Rusesabagina, as he shared his incredible survival story from the Rwandan genocide of 1994.

Schools in each district will partner in a collective effort to bring this project to fruition. Charity walks, concerts, and community book reads may be the type of fund raisers initiated for the effort. Save the Children projects that the targeted funds will build and staff the school for five years.

The Cartus Save the Children Committee, a 125+ member employee-initiated group, based at Cartus Corporation in Danbury, has inspired the project and their efforts with Danbury High School have already raised more than 40 percent of the targeted dollars. The site for the school will be in the village of Atok, in Northern Sudan. Other interested partners have expressed interest in putting a medical clinic with the school, creating opportunities for both health care and education. If other persons, schools, corporations, foundations, or religious groups would like further information or would like to be part of this exciting and challenging initiative, please contact:

Tim Salem
Assistant Principal
Danbury High School
203.797.4716
salemt@danbury.k12.ct.us

Rick Jones
Principal
North Farmington High School
248.785.2005
rick.jones@farmington.k12.mi.us

Doug D’Jay
203.470.6739
doug.djay@schoolinsudan.org

Building a School in Sudan for the Darfur Refugees by 2010.

“With knowledge comes responsibility.” — Mia Farrow