Nahant sixth-grade girls race to assist Ungandan orphanage

NAHANT – A typical sixth-grader might find playing four sports more than enough to keep them active.But Mia Forster and Ellie Wright are not typical sixth-graders. After all, most 11-year-olds don’t start their own international nonprofit organization or organize road races.”I enjoy playing sports and think that kids, no matter where they live, should have that option,” said Forster.And that includes orphans in Uganda.The two students at the Marblehead Community Charter School are the cofounders of Change 4 Uganda, a nonprofit organization that raises money and collects sporting equipment to benefit the Amani Baby Cottage in Jinja, Uganda.On Sunday, May 22, the two will “run” (as in organize) the inaugural Running 4 Change Road Race, a 3.5-mile charity run/walk in Nahant to raise money for their organization to give to the baby cottage.The girls have never been to Uganda. But after viewing a video from the orphanage that showed a cherubic laughing toddler playing on a slide, they decided they wanted to help.Mia’s mother, Patty, emailed the organization and found out that it needed lots of sporting equipment, particularly plastic equipment that was light enough to be shipped and used by newborns to kindergarten-age children, but sturdy enough to withstand the frequent use.”They said it’s really easy to get clothing, but they don’t get plastic toys,” Patty Forster said. “They don’t have department stores like Target or Walmart, so plastics are really hard to find.”The girls began soliciting money to benefit Amani, putting donation jars around Marblehead (Wright’s hometown) and Nahant and donating money they received for their birthdays into a special bank account for the organization. They recruited classmate Ben Cormier – “he’s really smart,” says Mia – to design a website for their organization, which they called Change 4 Uganda and established as a nonprofit with the mission of “strengthening kids’ bodies and minds to keep them healthy and active.”Meanwhile, they learned about the Amani Baby Cottage and Uganda. Wright explained that the cottage serves orphaned and abandoned children whose parents died because of civil war, AIDS or other violence.They are also learning about organizing a road race with help from Forster’s father, Daniel, who is an avid runner.To reduce overhead costs and donate more money to Amani, the girls will hand out numbered Popsicle sticks rather than assign official numbers. They also recruited donations of fruit and refreshments for the day of the race, have collected prizes and ordered medals for participants.So far, they have raised approximately $500, said Patty Forster, who is in charge of depositing the checks, and they are expecting about 100 runners to attend the event. The course will begin at the Nahant Life Saving Station, head down Foxhill Road to Flash Road and around the golf course, follow Willow Road and loop back via Nahant Road.Amani Baby Cottage Executive Director and cofounder E.J. “Corky” Randolph said that any help the organization receives “is greatly appreciated,” but donations from kids are especially notable. “We’re so grateful because it’s kids helping kids,” he said.Meanwhile, Forster and Wright are busy getting ready for the race.Forster said that their ultimate goal is to someday visit the baby cottage, where guests can stay overnight and volunteer. But right now, they are getting ready for the race by recruiting several of their teachers and friends to participate and eating a lot of Popsicles so that runners have numbers.”I’m excited because I think it’s going to be a big success,” said Wright.