By Carmen Lee-Bennett
Williamsville East High School is known for giving help to the community, and a great place to donate towards or provide service to is Journey’s End. Recently, Madame Roberts and the members of Société Honoraire de Français (French Honor Society) baked delicious goods for their bake sale, with the proceeds going towards Journey’s End.
But what is Journey’s End?
Journey’s End is a refugee service that provides resettlement, employment, education, and legal services to refugees coming to America, including Buffalo! It seeks to aid those in need of help while they venture into a completely new country.
Why did we choose to donate to Journey’s End?
During French Honor Society, Gabriel Shalamba, a Lead Employment Specialist at Journey’s End, discussed its impact on new residents of America and said his favorite part of the job was making people feel at ease despite their worries of entering a different lifestyle. He mentioned that he could speak around ten languages, including French (his native language), English, Congolese, and Italian, which undoubtedly helped his success in comforting new refugees that found hardships along their way to reaching the destination of Journey’s End and a new chapter of their lives. How would you feel if no one around you could speak the same language as you? The contrast with having someone and having no one to turn to is tremendous. Throughout the discussion, many of the members of French Honor Society realized the true impact Journey’s End had on refugees and society as a whole. Being a club that supports the diversity of languages and cultures in this world, we knew that this was a great place to donate our money to.
What will East do in the future with Journey’s End, and how can you help?
With our bake sale being a great success, raising over $150, that is something we may plan to do again. However, something we have never done before at East–which may be great for Journey’s End–is a childhood book drive. Donate your favorite childhood books that are collecting dust at your home or sitting in a store to children at Journey’s End. English and French books will be accepted during the National World Language Month of March in the World Language Office. Books are a great source of education and fun for children of all ages, and donating one or a few is a small thing you can do to largely impact others.
Journey’s End is one of the thousands of organizations we support and help at East, but you are the only one who can choose whether you join in on the help. Make a difference. The next time you see a bake sale or even a book drive, don’t be afraid to donate!
