SV senior's effort gets supplies to schoolkids
JACKSON TWP — For one Seneca Valley High School senior, a project to give back to communities is a personal endeavor.
Maria Murra, 17, recently completed a charitable project to deliver more than 2,500 pounds of school supplies to her native country of Colombia, an effort which she calls “Crayons for Colombia.”
“I got way more than what I expected,” Maria said. “I did not expect such a big turnout.”
Maria was born in Bogota, Colombia, and moved to the United States with her family when she was about 2 months old.
She got the idea to send school supplies to Colombian students from a similar volunteer effort her mother, Karin Murra, did a few years ago. The family visits Colombia every summer.
“I feel so proud,” Karin Murra said of her daughter's project. “She did everything by herself.”
Maria said, “We did a similar thing in collecting school supplies, because my mother was volunteering herself at a very poor school there (Colombia),” she said.
“She happened to be here when we were spring cleaning my house and I was just throwing away some broken crayons. She said, 'No, I'm taking those. Let's ask neighbors.' That was a huge impact for us.”
Maria collected the 2,500 pounds of supplies through donations from the school district, friends and family.
She said she “felt it would be fit to give back to the Colombian community.”
“They don't have as many resources as we do,” she said.
Maria also worked with middle school Spanish teacher Elana Kriess, whose class was in the middle of a unit on expressing needs for schools and classrooms.
“She posted information on a neighborhood community board that I happened to see,” Kriess said. “I was interested in getting my students involved in helping her out with her project because it's a great cause and it was very relevant to what we were studying in my classes.”
Maria traveled to Colombia in January to deliver the supplies via Fundacion Nutrinfantil, an organization that works with children ages 12 and younger who are dealing with poverty.
She got in touch with the program through a friend of her mother's.
About 300 children received school supplies such as notebooks, writing implements, scissors and erasers, with about 25 receiving them from Maria personally. The students started school in February.
“There probably is no better feeling than giving to people that truly appreciate it and are in need,” she said. “I will never forget my trip to Colombia to give back.”
Maria said she plans on volunteering in some way when she attends college.
“Being able to hand out the supplies was such an amazing experience that really taught me to never take anything, even crayons, for granted,” Maria said.
“Seeing the smiles on these kids' faces, and even tears from some parents, really broke my heart, but made me glad I could do a small part in helping them succeed in school and getting their education.”
