One of the main purposes of Choate’s Service Day is to inspire the community to make an impact, and this year’s featured film Every Three Seconds, a documentary about world hunger and poverty, helped do just that. During Service Day on October 2, the screenings of this film left students inspired and in tears.
The film took the student body through the journeys of five characters who dedicate their lives to helping others.
Charlie Simpson, a seven-year-old boy, supports UNICEF UK; Josh Nesbit, a medical intern, uses technology to improve health care in impoverished communities; Ingrid Munro, gives people the necessary resources to climb out of poverty by running a micro-finance institution in Kenya called Jamii Bora; Lisa Shannon hosts runs to help Congelese women; and 68-year-old Gloria Henderson stands against world hunger by gleaning, or combing of harvested fields for left behind crops. Every Three Seconds showcased their inspiring work, sparking conversation.
The documentary was chosen with the intention to have a lasting effect. Ms. Mary Pashley, Choate’s Director of Community Service, stated, “Our hope was that students would understand that hunger and extreme poverty is the reality for many people, and that they have a responsibility in their lifetime to help others whenever they can.”
Fraynette Familia ’16, a Service Day facilitator, believes that the movie provided a personal element: “It is one thing to just pack and not have any feeling for it, but knowing who your efforts are helping and what problems you can change is powerful.”
Every Three Seconds also highlighted ways that students can help from Choate. UNICEF and Women for Women, non-profit organizations who both have clubs, were featured in the documentary.
Every Three Seconds not only touched hearts and was educational, but reminded us that it is possible to make a difference no matter who you are, how old you are, or where you come from.
