Bruriah High School and I have embarked on a journey to raise 1.5 million pennies to commemorate the 1.5 million children who died in the Holocaust. The money raised will go to various organizations, all of which help children. The money will be divided up and donated to different orphanages and scholarship funds.

The 1.5 million children killed in the Holocaust never got the chance to reach their full potential and we want to enable many children to thrive and fulfill theirs. With this money, we’re allowing today’s children to live and grow and contribute to society in ways the other children never had the chance to. Our goal is to give as many children as possible a chance to live healthy and happy lives in memory of those children who never had that chance.

One penny doesn’t have much value; however, when you look at it as the equivalent of one child who died, a penny suddenly means so much more.

They say that one person can change the world. But that is not enough. When one person stands up and tries to change the world, the people who join in and help contribute are the ones making the significant changes. The first person is the lone wolf, but the first follower is the real leader. Doing this alone will take many years, but with your help I’d like to have the goal accomplished by the end of this school year.

To participate, please make checks out to “JEC” and mailed to Penny Fund, ℅ Mikayla Elk, 35 North Avenue, Elizabeth, NJ 07208.

By Mikayla Elk, junior, Bruriah High School