Valley Stream students help Pakistan one mile at a time

Following devastating floods in Pakistan, with affected 20 million people and put nearly one-fifth of the nation’s land under water, three Forest Road School students decided they were going to take some action.

Tyler Reyes, Isadora Decarvalho and Hana Amin, all sixth-graders, organized a walk-a-thon to raise money for relief efforts. The walk was held at the end of October, and it raised $674.12.

Isadora said that the requested contribution was $1 for each mile a student walked. The distance varied by grade level, with kindergartners asked to complete one mile and sixth graders asked to walk three miles. Four trips around the back field equaled one mile.

All students who participated got mileage cards, and the three girls stamped the cards each time around the field. The walk-a-thon was held during lunch and recess, and about 150 students participated — about half the school — exceeding their expectations.

To promote the event, the girls went on the public address system twice a day, and Hana made posters to hang around the school.

Money will be used to purchase medical supplies, which will be donated to a Pakistan relief organization. Isadora noted that many people were hurt, and the flooding also wiped out much of the nation’s medical supplies. Forest Road Principal Erin Malone said there is another family from the school that will make arrangements for the supplies to get into the right hands.

The girls said they are proud of their work and thankful to all students who made a contribution to the relief efforts. “I’m not from Pakistan, but I wanted to help,” Hana said.

Malone said she was very proud of the efforts of the three girls and how they made a difference from Valley Stream. “They stuck with it,” she said. “From a small idea, really large things can happen.”