Some children in Cedar Rapids do not have the same educational opportunities as others. Helping children in Cedar Rapids is a top priority for seniors Madeline Abu-Nameh and Camryn Kauffman. Last year, they started a shoe and sock drive at Xavier High School. This year, they plan to start a book drive that not only involves Xavier but also the Xavier feeder schools and surrounding public schools.

Helping the Cedar Rapids community is one of their main priorities. They want to be able to educate as many children as possible and give to those who are less fortunate.

“We wanted to do this drive because we believe education is very important,” Abu-Nameh said. “Many kids are not able to receive a great education because they do not have access to books. We have both been blessed with our education, so we want to help provide opportunities for others.”

They have not yet chosen the organization they plan to donate the books to, but want to reach out and give as many as possible to the local children in Cedar Rapids. They also want to inspire all Xavier students to go into the community and help those in need.

“We loved helping the homeless in Cedar Rapids and those in need of shoes all around the world last year,” Kauffman said. “We thought that we could help out others this year by providing books to people who need them.”

The exact donation dates have not yet been set. The girls hope to begin collecting donations between early February and early March. They plan to make it a competition between grades to try and bring in as many old and new books as possible.