We need jewelry supplies to make handmade jewelry. Mailing supplies will be used for the invitations to the event and gift bags and tissue paper to present the jewelry.
My students are so kind and amazing! Sofia, Raiona, Dana, Anna, Teddy, Dani, Maya, Dani, Jake and 41 other kids are ridiculously talented and want to use their skills to make over 33 women who are in remission, undergoing chemo or who are survivors SMILE with a custom designed piece of jewelry.
9 years ago a day was spent fabricating handmade sterling silver jewelry to be sold at a local store; proceeds would go to the charity of the students' choosing. The jewelry was also donated to local women's shelters and Dress for Success. We decided that anyone can donate money so I thought we could do more. My students and I wanted to make our efforts more personal and use the skills of a jeweler to make women smile. A former student's mother died from a cancer and she co-created Cancer Be Glammed with another student's mother which helps women undergoing chemo cope with the harsh realities of what it does to a person's psyche. I called her and asked if she could share the names of her clients so we could personally make them jewelry. Participants were paired with my student jewelers to co-design jewelry that would be given to them. Jewelry Love was born. The first year we had 13 participants and 20+ students, now four years later we have over 35 women and 50+ student participants.
This program allows for the teamwork of my students. The idea is for them to create something they’ve never done before, something customized and absolutely unique. Every minute they spend working on this project they are learning something new. The process behind one piece of jewelry is extremely extensive; each piece has been created from copious amounts of trial, error, and success. It takes a great amount of commitment.
One of the most important values this program promotes is dedication. Dedication is a necessary trait for success in school. This program creates a devotion within students. They carry this ideal through their entire school careers. This project is not about evaluating students for a grade. This project is about learning the importance of giving from the goodness of your heart and doing something for other people. My students do not participate in this project for a grade; they simply want to do something wonderful for someone else.
In Their Own Words
The goal of Jewelry Love is to integrate people from all walks of life. This program pulls the different communities of Pittsburgh together. The perspective gained from this program is immeasurable; we get a diverse outlook on problems these women have been struggling with. We are able to culminate with other students as well as the women in the program, which creates an environment no one is accustomed to. Jewelry Love truly helps us see the world with a different perspective.
This program is filled with leadership opportunities. Every student is in charge of their own project. We call the women and ask about their jewelry preferences. We design the pieces of jewelry ourselves. We make sure to send out thank you notes and save the date cards. We work in groups, so naturally leaders emerge. In order to be successful in this program you have to be organized. Each student is held accountable for his or her project. There is no safety net, just like the real world.
This project is a humble one. It won’t solve the world’s problems but it will impact the lives of so many people. If we can, even for a second, put a smile on someone’s face who is going through an awful time, then we have done our job. I think it is really important to continue to fund events such as this. Our school has hundreds of programs that finance math and science, why can’t we do the same for art programs that teach us to be well-rounded, good human beings?
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mrs. Farber and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
