Birmingham Students Present Famine Check

Students at Birmingham High School in Van Nuys Thursday presented Los Angeles school board members Rita Walters and Roberta Weintraub with a check for $8,108.18 raised as part of the “L.A. Students Make a Miracle” project for Ethiopian famine relief.

It was the second highest amount raised by a school in the district. Fairfax High in Los Angeles raised $10,000. Los Angeles students have contributed $340,000 for medical and emergency supplies to help Ethiopian famine victims.

The Los Angeles fund-raising campaign began in response to a friendly challenge issued by students of New York City public schools, who raised $250,000 for Ethiopian relief.

Birmingham students gave up junk food and soft drinks for a week and donated the money they would have spent on the snacks to the drive. They also sponsored car washes, bake sales, movies and a lunchtime walk-a-thon in which students collected money for every mile they walked around the school track.

“Money is still coming in,” said Louis Ramirez, director of student activities at Birmingham. “We think we’ll hit our goal of $10,000, but it’s going to take a little longer than we expected.”