pen-pal relationship

hello everyone!
it's been a while and I am sorry to have not been more consistent in the last couple of days! It's been a busy time and blogging has not been on the forefront of my mind. Thank you for bearing with me :)

As you all know El Centro is an organization that I absolutely adore. I worked there in the summer of 2009 and I volunteered there for the second half of my Gettysburg College experience. I also developed wonderful relationships with the staff and the kids, which I continue to treasure so much. Being with New Futures now, I see a lot of similarities between the two organizations (though many differences as well!). Because I totally believe in writing and expressing oneself as vitally important to our human existence (you'll read more about this in an upcoming blog on poetry!) I thought that a pen-pal relationship between El Centro and New Futures would be wonderful. The kids I worked with at El Centro and am now with at New Futures are in the same age range and both populations deal with really similar issues and experiences. Staying in touch with my kiddos from El Centro was also appealing :) I suggested the idea to my supervisor and she loved it! I made all the necessary connections and El Centro was supportive too! It has been really exciting and build these relationships and connect our communities that are over 2,500 miles apart from each other.

We are in currently in our second round of exchanging letters. New Futures mailed off the first letters to El Centro and we have received responses. The 1st-3rd graders have all finished their letters and now the 4th-6th graders are finishing up theirs. By the end of this week, I hope they are on their way! The kids write about themselves, their interests and their experiences. It is really cool to see them become engaged in writing and interested in these people across the country. Of course, at times, the concept of letters going through the mail doesn't quite make sense, nor does the time it takes to get there and back. However, the kids have been overall excited and I would deem this project a success.

These kids are writing to...

...These kids

And back and forth and back and forth... I hope :)

Twelve days to Christmas! I'm home this weekend for my mom's annual holiday party and my little brothers' Christmas pageant! I am looking forward to the holiday activities :) What do your holiday plans look like?

PS Did you have a pen-pal growing up??