Becker students gather at an assembly in collaboration with Zaman International.

DEARBORN — Students at Becker Elementary School raised an impressive $1,850 during the month of April to support two struggling families in metro Detroit.

The initiative involved a collaborative effort with the school’s PTA and Zaman International, a local non-profit organization that leads charitable measures for families around metro Detroit.

According to Zaman, one of the families consists of recent refugees who had just settled in metro Detroit.

Both families include single mothers— one with two children and the other with four— who needed assistance with their basic needs.

Ayda El-Saghir, PTA president at Becker, said parents wanted to teach their children an extraordinary lesson in giving and decided to reach out to Zaman for a cause.

“These kids need to know that we don’t have to be millionaires to make a significant difference on people’s lives,” El-Saghir said. “As a parent at that school, we are really fortunate to have students at this young age who were able to make a difference.”

At the beginning of April, the school held a pep rally to introduce the charitable efforts to the 280 students. Students watched a video about charity and were told about the two families requiring assistance.

From there, cans were dispersed throughout the school for students to donate money on a daily basis.

El-Saghir said by the end of the month, students had far exceeded expectations in their charitable efforts.

The school then held a second pep rally to conclude its month long charity cause and presented Zaman with two baskets donated by the PTA. One basket contained a sewing machine for one of the mothers who had aspirations to start a business as a tailor.

Becker’s PTA.

El-Saghir, who has two children at Becker, said she encourages more parents to be involved in their school’s PTA, because it positively impacts their children.

“There is importance in a parent being heavily involved at their child’s schools,” she said. “It results in positive impact on student achievement. They see their parents in the building and that leads to good behavior, better grades and stronger involvement in extra curricular activities.”

For the last four years, the PTA had collaborated with a local non-profit organization to raise awareness of a particular cause. Last year, students were involved in charitable efforts for a Down Syndrome cause and raised more than $900.

In 2014, students chopped off their hair to make wigs for cancer patients.

El-Saghir said all these causes have led to a shifting culture at Becker –one where students are more focused on giving than receiving.

That is why with this latest charitable cause, the school raised more money than ever before.

“It is really significant for kids of this age to raise this much money,” El-Saghir said. “Giving has made them happier. They understand that it makes us work towards building a better world.”

Monica Boomer, director of Community Engagement and Volunteering at Zaman, said the organization is impressed by the efforts at Becker Elementary.

She also said the two single mothers were ecstatic by the donations they’ve received.

 “They were overjoyed by the support they’ve received from the community,” Boomer said. “They had been working very hard to support their children themselves, but because of medical needs, they found themselves struggling to provide for basic necessities.”

Boomer added that one of Zaman International’s mission statements is to bust intergenerational poverty. She noted that it’s remarkable that school children were involved in the initiative.

“There’s something special about having children being involved in this mission,” she said.

Zaman International is always looking to collaborate with individuals or groups in charitable drives. To reach out to the organization, visit its website at www.zamaninternational.org or call 313-551-3994.