First Meeting: 9/17

Hi everyone! Our first meeting of the school year was amazing -- Mr. McKee's room was overflowing with UNICEF members! To begin the meeting, we introduced our new officer board and asked some questions about UNICEF.

Next, we discussed UNICEF's mission. If you didn't already know, UNICEF is an organization run by the United Nations that works to promote the rights and well-being of every child. UNICEF was founded in 1946, after the horrors of World War II showed the world how important it was to uphold human rights and protect children. In the years since, UNICEF has provided humanitarian assistance to millions of children and mothers in developing countries. Some core aspects of UNICEF's mission are helping children meet their basic needs, promoting gender equality, protecting disadvantaged children (orphans, refugees, victims of war and genocide), and acting as a first responder in emergencies.

As a UNICEF high school club, we will work to assist UNICEF in its mission, through both fundraising and raising awareness. Our goals for this year are:

• Promoting awareness about global issues on a local scale

• Raising at least $2,000 to donate to children in need

• Encouraging involvement in helping disadvantaged children worldwide

We will have monthly themes where we discuss different aspects of UNICEF's mission, such as HIV/AIDS awareness, the refugee crisis, and access to water. September's monthly theme is education, which we will expand upon next meeting.

Lastly, if you weren't able to do so at the meeting, sign in on our sign up sheet HERE. Be sure to bookmark our website, which we'll be using often for meeting recaps and important announcements. Join our Remind by texting @vhsunicefc to 81010. Also, follow us on Twitter and Instagram for club pictures/updates! We follow back ;) If you have any questions or suggestions, don't hesitate to contact us at valenciaunicef@gmail.com

Our next meeting will be Monday, 9/24, in Room 516. See you all there!