A child is never too young to learn empathy and compassion for people in need. That's part of the philosophy of the Lutheran Day During the month of November, the 4-year-old children took on a project to collect cans of soup to give to a local food pantry. Ms. Paulette Bennett and Ms. Janet Zambrano, their teachers, talked to the children about caring for people in need--even people they did not personally know.
"I believe community service is an attitude that children need to learn long before they are in high school," said Ms. Bennett. "You don't have to teach children to be selfish--that comes naturally. What they need to learn is feeling concern for others." The children collected 50 cans of soup for the hungry. In the process, they also learned counting and sorting skills. They also wrote a message of encouragement on each can. The children have now decided to take on another project. During the month of December, they plan to collect 75 pairs of socks for the elderly residents of Lexington Health Care Center in Chicago Ridge, IL.
Rev. Bruce Ray, the center's Executive Director, noted, "With young children, we often concentrate on academic skills to prepare them for success in school. However, we cannot afford to neglect the life skills that will enable our children to contribute to the health of our community." These 4-year-olds have gotten a head start.
