KITE DAY APRIL 8

Caitlin Mannion flies her Franklin Kite, made with pieces of used kites, in Lynn on Friday. (Item Photo / Owen O'Rourke)

Classical students fly kites for a Cause

By Chris Stevens / The Daily Item

LYNN - Inspired by Khaled Hosseini's book "The Kite Runner," a 10th grade class at Classical High School decided to embrace a culture, try and make a difference and go fly some kites - a lot of them.

English teacher Patty Frey introduced her class to the book, which tells the story of two boys, one privileged and one a servant, set against the backdrop of a turbulent Afghanistan and the rise of the Taliban regime. Frey said she was shocked when her students became enraptured.

"Never in my 32 years of teaching has a group of tenth graders been so excited about reading a book," she said. "All eyes were always in the book."

One particular section of the book that focused on an orphanage, Frey said, had a huge impact on the kids. After reading it, she said the students decided they should do something to help the children of Afghanistan.

After doing a little research, Frey said she found the "Help the Afghanistan Children Organization," which connected her class with an Afghan school, which the students have now adopted. She said they have been in contact with the Afghan students through video tapes and computer chats.

The students, however, wanted to do more than chat.

Keeping with the title of the book, Frey said the students decided to sell authentic Afghanistan kites to help raise money for the Afghan school. To find out where to get such kites she called her good friend and former Classical teacher Asiya Hamizad. Frey said Hamizad's husband happened to be in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, at the time.

"So I asked him if he could pick me up 100 kites," Frey said. "I didn't know how they would do."

The kites only cost $2 a piece to purchase but they cost $300 to ship. Frey said Principal Gene Constantino stepped up and covered the cost.

The kids then sold the kites to their classmates, friends and each other at $10 apiece.

"We sold out in three days," Frey said. "We made $1,000 for the school. ... It just caught on."

On Friday, more than 100 students scattered over the field in the park across the street from Classical and attempted to send their kites running skyward.

Sophomore Moses Lima spent much of the afternoon stringing kites for his classmates before he sent his own soaring into the wind. While many kites crash landed or became tangled Lima's hung high in the sky, drifting in the late-afternoon sun.

"I used to do this when I was a kid with my father," he said. "He taught me how to do all this."

Jamie Shires and Rachael Thomas weren't having a lot of success with their kite but both said they loved the book.

"I cried," Shires said.

"It told a true story," Thomas added. "It didn't fake anything."

Another student called the book inspiring, while Moises Ramirez called Hosseini, the author, eloquent. Referring to part of the book where one young boy becomes victim of a brutal attack, he said, "It makes you think twice about bullying."

"I would recommend it to anyone," added Oscar Mieses. "It catches your attention. It caught mine."

Thanks to the following students for contributing to, and participating in, Afghani Kite Day:

Guyelle Santille Issac Ardon Calvin Ebieshuwa Jesus Salvador Garcia Jeremy Sanabria

After Mrs. Frey introduced her sophomore class to excerpts of the book The Kite Runner, her fellow 10th Grade teachers Mrs. Koutroubis, Mr. McQueen an Ms. Shairs joined in by reading excerpts of the book to their classes, written by Khaled Hosseini, taken from our English text. As a result, many students wanted to read the entire book, which was originally offered only to Advanced Placement classes. We ordered the books along with the author’s audio recording and this began our immersion into Afghanistan culture. After exposing the classes to the Kite Runner, our students wanted to do more than just take a final test and fly a kite.

On Friday, April 8, at approximately 1:30 , Classical students started flying kites over Classical for Afghanistan. We actually sold 100 authentic Afghanistan kites for $10.00 each, acquired in Kabul by Asiya Hamizad, previously a Classical teacher, good friend and Afghanistan native. We are working closely with Help the Afghanistan Children Organization in a cultural exchange program linking us with a sister school in order to help students with the money we collect. We look forward to making new friends in Afghanistan and had fun flying kites.

The Kite Runner chronicles the lives of specifically two boys, Amir and Hassan

within the politically, socially and culturally charged landscape that is Afghanistan.

Hassan, a Hazara, is Amir’s servant, best friend, half-brother and a survivor of an

unconscionable discrimination and betrayal. Amir, a Pashtun, is a confused youth

who allows emotions, society and privilege to overshadow what he knows is right

and wrong. The story is a riveting tale that clearly documents the trials and tribulations

and moral systems especially in the face of ethnic conflict, war and social stigmas.

The Kite Runner is one of few books/films that truly demonstrate both internal conflicts

within individuals and countries as well as the external conflicts that affect

them. Afghanistan’s multi-ethnic mosaic of citizens allows for a truly memorable

tapestry of storylines about fathers and sons, servants, best friends, love, and family.