By McKenna MIDDLETON, intern

With all the community support Crescenta Valley schools receive it can be hard to imagine a school having problems so severe that they compromise the ability of providing an education. But this is the case with Dalipuga Central School, located in a poverty-stricken, remote area of the southern part of the Philippines.

Crescenta Valley High School social science teacher Pia Hugo was able to visit the school during a trip to the Philippines with her family this past summer. Dalipuga’s principal took Hugo and her family on a tour of the campus, where she discovered the immense need of the school.

“The first thing that struck me was how really deplorable the conditions were,” said Hugo.

The school had only two bathrooms for over 1,000 students but due to a lack of running water even those meager facilities were deemed unusable. Although a new cafeteria seemed to be in the works, the area has been under construction for several years, stalled due to a loss of initial funds. Two extremely dilapidated classrooms, with ceilings falling apart causing water to come in during the rainy season, housed many of the eager students. The buildings were deemed unsafe and were scheduled for demolition.

“The principal was hesitating on demolishing the buildings because she was afraid the kids wouldn’t have anywhere to go because of the lack of funding,” Hugo said.

Hugo and her family brought some athletic equipment, school supplies, toys, and candy to share with the kids at the school. The students and faculty of Dalipuga Central School were grateful for the supplies and put them to immediate use. Though the aid Hugo provided during her visit was appreciated, she knew there was more that needed to be done. Hugo wrote to the principal after returning to the states, asking how much the construction of two new classrooms would cost. It came out to about 6,000 American dollars.

The GUSD youth network, Project XIX, under the spiritual covering of “Youth for Christ,” decided to fundraise to provide these children with two new classrooms. With the help of her family, friends, and local high school Christian clubs, Hugo hopes to raise the money by the end of November. The Falcon Christian Fellowship Club at Crescenta Valley High School, as well as the Christian clubs at Hoover and Glendale high schools, is raising money through candy sales.

Donations will go toward the construction of two new classrooms and additional school supplies and toys for the students at Dalipuga Central School.

Checks can be made out to: Youth for Christ and sent to Pia Hugo, 3760 Altura Ave., La Crescenta, CA 91214. Donations can be made through Paypal or by using a debit/credit card through the donation site: http://www.youcaring.com/nonprofits/-let-s-build-two-new-classrooms-/223597.

For questions, please email Pia Hugo at piahugo@yahoo.com.

  Mckenna MIDDLETON