My students are required to do community service hours as part of the junior year curriculum. Some of them have a hard time getting to volunteer sites due to family obligations, transportation issues, etc. Having them be able to make bracelets to donate to 7000 Bracelets seemed like a perfect opportunity to allow students to help others, while having fun.
The students who volunteered will have to write a paper that includes a description of 7000 Bracelets for Hope and what it stands for. The universal appeal of beads was evident as the students loved digging through the huge pile of beads I had bought, looking for their favorites!
While you can't see the ends of the bracelets in these photos, they were all finished off with a lobster claw clasp, and a short length of chain, so that they would be adjustable. This batch of bracelets was sent off to the organization this past week and they should have them by now (fingers crossed that USPS came through!!).
And the good news is that I will have a second shipment of bracelets to send after we get back for the holidays. I still have some bracelets that need to be finished off and a couple of the students need to do a hour or two more service. I'm hoping that we will be able to send at least 50 bracelets this year!
Lastly, I sent in one more bracelet that I created, a simple macrame. There were also some friendship bracelets made for children, but I didn't get a picture of those. :( My students seemed to enjoy making those because they knew they would be going to children!
I am so proud of the students that decided to volunteer for 7000 Bracelets. It's good for young people to know that they can make someone else happy, even if it's through something as seemingly simple as creating a piece of jewelry. I am hoping to run this opportunity next year if I can get some of the local bead stores to donate to the cause. This way, I can open the opportunity up to even more students!
