Breaking the Chain Through Education Names Event for Student Lost to Cancer
On October 14, 2018, Breaking the Chain through Education will hold a 5K Walk/Run Fundraiser in Metuchen, NJ. The event welcomes runners, walkers and sponsors and will begin at 8:30 am at Metuchen High School, 400 Grove Avenue. For runners, the course is a certified 5K with official time keeping.
Breaking the Chain Through Education (BTCTE) and its partners seek to free children who are trafficked into the fishing industry in Ghana, Africa as young as 4 or 5 years old. Thousands of kids whose childhoods are ripped from them face daily hardship and danger; many drown each year, trapped in fishing nets below the water. Once rescued and rehabilitated, BTCTE helps educate and care for these children until they are able to support themselves. Our children are learning or have become teachers, nurses, plumbers, electricians, truck drivers etc.
Evan Robbins, the teacher who founded BTCTE and serves as its CEO, was deeply touched after learning about the plight of these children from an article in the New York Times. He chose to name the race after Sam Liss, one of the students who helped found the BTCTE club at Metuchen High School. Sam died from cancer on July 5, 2017 after a 15-month struggle. A 2010 graduate of Metuchen High and 2014 graduate of Emory University, he was enormously proud of his association with Breaking the Chain Through Education.
Evan returned from his annual trip to Ghana on July 31 and shared some of his experiences. “The goal is to take kids who have known nothing but poverty and slavery and make them self-sufficient and whole.” He described some of the current challenges. Two of the teens needed medical care in Accra, the capital of Ghana; one had Elephantiasis of the leg that was so extreme it required surgery. Another student developed a gangrenous skin infection, which had burst. Due to very difficult family situations, BTCTE is expanding the number of students attending boarding schools. They recently brought in a new social worker to help trouble-shoot problems faced by the children and their families as they arise.
As a 501(c)(3) charity, contributions to BTCTE are tax deductible. Race/walk participation costs $30. Sponsorship ranges from as low as $100 to $5,000, which features your family name or business logo on the event tech-shirt and on a variety of promotional materials and outreach opportunities. Contributions must be received by September 30th. Registering for the 5K can be done up until the day of the event.