Students can help Iraqi children by donating school supplies.

Two campus organziations – Supporting Opportunity for Latinos (SOL) and the Latino Resource Center (LRC) – partnered with DeKalb’s Clinton Rosette Middle School to collect donations for Iraqi children.

SOL and the LRC have a mentoring program for the students of Clinton Rosette.

Javier Talavera, second-year law school student and graduate assistant for the LRC, said the center goes to the middle school to talk with and tutor the students.

He added the students of the middle school organized the donations for the Iraqi children, and SOL and the LRC are helping them out.

Jorge Saldana, industrial management graduate student and graduate assistant for SOL, said the organizations are role models to help children in DeKalb and in Iraq.

“We do a lot of mentoring the students in the middle schools to continue their education,” Saldana said. “We would like to help the middle school out to give more for the Iraqi children.”

Donations include school and sport supplies such as soccer balls. The supplies can be donated in the Campus Life Building, Lincoln Towers and the Latino Resource Center.

Talavera spent a year in Iraq with the Illinois Army National Guard.

“We got to see the kids out there,” he said. “We would go and give them some school supplies.”

Talavera said he has a friend who is a Marine stationed in Ramadi, and the donations are being shipped there, as well as Fallujah and Afghanistan. Donations will be collected until the end of the semester.

Saldana said he is pleased with helping others.

“On a personal level, God has blessed me with wonderful things in my life to help children and charities,” Saldana said.

Talavera hopes the Iraqi children iare aware of the helping Americans and the donors here at NIU feel pleased in giving.

“I hope the donations are a sign of friendship from the Americans, and hopefully winning the [Iraqi children’s] hearts and minds, he said. “For NIU, I hope this teaches them the whole process of leadership and team building, and to reach out and help other people.”