how
CHAMPS International started CHAMPS (Children Against Mines
Program), a student-lead program of The Marshall Legacy Institute
(MLI), began in 2002 when Diana Enzi, wife of Senator
Mike Enzi of Wyoming, heard about the Adopt-A-Dog Program, where
Corporations adopt/sponsor Mine Detection Dogs (MDD’s)
and deploy them to mine-affected countries around the world. She
believed that if school children could learn about the mine issue,
had the chance to see a real MDD in action in a simulated minefield
demonstration, and was offered the opportunity to affect change
in the world they would respond with a resounding YES!! And
she was right. That year Diana led a CHAMPS Campaign across
Wyoming which resulted in the first student-sponsored deployment
of a highly skilled MDD to Sri Lanka.
Wyoming “sniffs
mines” and
saves lives, a gift from the students of Wyoming to the children
of Sri Lanka.
Three
years later, in January 2005, in partnership with the US Department
of State, MLI officially launched CHAMPS across the United States
and hired CHAMPS Director Kimberly McCasland. In
November 2007 the 14th CHAMPS dog was funded. School
children have taken the exciting opportunity to extend the tradition
of civic leadership by joining other students in schools around
the nation in adopting their very own MineDetection
Dog. Schools, Girl Scouts, and private families in Arizona,Connecticut,
Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont and more
have joined Wyoming in this incredible venture.
Our
Incredible Student Leaders
In
each Campaign young leaders have emerged.Teachers were asked
to identify those students who took a leadership role in their
Campaign, participated in most if not all of the fundraising
events, and encouraged others to join in the effort.These
teacher-nominated student leaders, in recognition and as a
reward, have joined other donors on MLI sponsored Donor Delegation
Trips traveling to the mine-affected country where their dogs
are serving. Meeting their dogs, seeing dogs working in the
field, meeting government officials who run the mine action
program, and meeting other student leaders who live in that
country were only some of the events the students participated
in. And the results have been incredible.
Ambassador Bisera Turkovic, Bosnian Ambassador
to the United States in Washington, DC, while attending a CHAMPS
Workshop in Washington, requested a meeting of these young American
student leaders with her student leaders in Bosnia Herzegovina while
on the Donor Delegation Trip. During this meeting the students shared
their ideas, feelings and amazement at just how much they were alike. “It
is amazing to me that you, you who do not know us, would spend so
much time to raise such a large amount of money to help us here in
Bosnia Herzegovina...to help us get rid of these landmines, and we
are not helping ourselves.” This statement by one young lady
from the Catholic Center School in Sarajevo was what led to the formation
of the CHAMPS International Program.
What
about the Landmine Victims...?One of
the most talked about subjects that came out of those student meetings
was the plight of the landmine survivors, those who have been maimed
by landmines and struggle to rejoin society. Mine victim’s
have many medical requirements such as prosthetics or prosthetic
adjustments, surgery, physical and emotional therapy and job training
which in many cases goes beyond what these countries can afford
to provide for their people. For so many mine victims, there remains
a void that needs to be filled.
“Why
can’t we help them? Why can’t we run Campaigns that
can raise the money for those things, we can do it…WE can
do it!!” This statement, from young Bianca Streep of
Kingston, New Hampshire, the student leader who brought CHAMPS
to her 4th Grade class which lead to the sponsorship
of "Granite" nearly two years later,
gave MLI President Perry Baltimore the idea to let the CHAMPS International
Program Campaigns help mine victim’s around the world.
CHAMPS
International : Basic Concept- Students in the United States run Campaigns to raise funds for mine victim’s medical needs.
- International students identify and befriend mine victims in their communities/schools.
- US and International students meet virtually at least monthly using Skypecasts
- Students visit each others countries.
To date, CHAMPS International Campaigns have raised funds to help mine victims in the country their dog is serving.But, this program is not limited to schools that have sponsored dogs. Working in partnership with CHAMPS Patron Joan Wismer, the US Department of State, and the International Trust Fund, any school can join in the effort to help mine victims!
By going to < www.skype.com >
schools can download software which will allow them to log into
monthly scheduled CHAMPS Skypecasts.
Schools in the
Objectives
for the International ProgramOur objectives are to provide the students of the United States and in Bosnia Herzegovina with:
- Education about the worldwide landmine crisis and its effects
- The experience of helping landmine victims
- The understanding of their role in the global community
- A unique project to fulfill community service requirements
- The opportunity to develop their leadership skills by assisting others
Our
Campaign TimelineNo timeline applies to this program. Schools can join at any time.
Just contact MLI at (703) 243-9200, or go to the < Contact Us > section to send in your request!
Our
Incredible Sponsor
The
Marshall Legacy Institute (MLI) and CHAMPS Director, Kimberly McCasland,
want to send a very special Thank You to Mrs.
Joan Wismer. Mrs. Wismer has kindly donated the funds
to build the websites for CHAMPS Kids and CHAMPS International, and
has donated enough to allow for the purchase of all electronic webcams
and equipment to connect the CHAMPS Campaigns from around the world. Thank
you Joan, for your caring heart that makes all of this possible!!