FULLERTON - Six hundred elementary school children gained global citizenry Thursday morning when South African Consul General Jeanette Ndhlovu acknowledged Laguna Road School's $32,000 gift, which upgraded a small village school 20 miles north of Cape Town.

A short video prepared for the visitor pictured the "before" setting at Mflueni School with dirt floors inside a cinderblock building. Learning was accomplished through stories and dancing on a campus with no desks, no chairs, few supplies and no playgrounds.

It is illegal for a child to attend the school without a government-issued uniform, which costs the family $50. Those who can afford the clothing receive one hot meal daily and a six-year education.

The "after" segment showed a safety fence with barbed wire circling the school, shiny new classroom desks and chairs, a hydroponic garden, all children in uniforms and new playground equipment.

Amazed at the transformation, Ndholvu told students: "We're living in a world with a lot of money and wealth. Yet, some children go to bed hungry; having clean water is a challenge in our villages.

"But by looking here at Fullerton's students, I think our future is very bright," she said.

The "sister school" effort was launched in April 2007 by Laguna Road Instructional Aide Kristie Lanktree, whose daughter Briana, 13, was selected as one of five families to represent America in the UCLA Global Buddies project.

Lanktree said the pair was flying back from a week's stay in the impoverished village located 10,000 miles from Fullerton when Briana told her mother, "I want to do something to make a difference in people's lives."

Kristie Lanktree knew immediately Laguna Road students would help.

"Many people thought because of the economy and the children being so young, our chances (of meeting a goal) would be difficult, if not impossible," she said. "But they don't know our kids at Laguna Road. They know about community service, volunteering and sharing so others can benefit."

In one year, the Fullerton school's "Kids Helping Kids" project provided the funds to furnish the necessities for 1,200 schoolchildren in the shantytown that is home to 60,000 residents.

Fundraising success from sales of baked goods, popcorn, wristbands and home-grown vegetables were measured on a cardboard thermometer, which was displayed regularly on campus.

Last March, the Lanktrees returned to Mfuleni with the provisions they had promised.

An additional $1,000 was spent on ballroom dancing uniforms, which Kristie Lanktree said is almost a national sport.

"The students practice every day after school because it's a way to get a scholarship for college," she said. "But they must have the uniforms to enter competitions, and now they can."

Briana was kept busy showing the classmates how to jump rope, swing without standing up and climb on equipment they had never seen.

"I learned there is a big difference between want and need," Kristie Lanktree said at the morning assembly. "I learned one person can make a difference – and children can and will help others when given the opportunity.

"You are setting an example for elementary school children around the world," she told the Laguna Road Roadrunners.

And, then, after looking at the visiting dignitaries, Lanktree shouted at the children, "The VIPs are you."

-By BARBARA GIASONE

The Orange County Register

CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE