Gavar Special School

NEW YORK (Syracuse Post Standard) By Jim Read

Inspired by their grandmother, two Manlius siblings are helping to revitalize a school for special-needs children in a faraway nation. Meaghan Anklin, 14, and Christopher Anklin, 12, have so far raised almost $7,000 for the Gavar Special School No. 1 in Gavar, Armenia. They live with their parents, Mary and Chris Anklin, near Fayetteville, N.Y.

The students learned about the school from their grandmother, Janet Munro, of Cazenovia. Munro, a retired East Syracuse-Minoa English teacher, has been working in Armenia as a Peace Corps volunteer since June 2004.

Munro had been home for the holidays but recently returned to Armenia.

Munro and her Peace Corps site mate, Jason Sprague, a business volunteer, have been working together to improve conditions at Gavar Special School.

“Rural Armenia is about 50 years behind America,” Munro said in an email sent before her return home. “Their capital, Yerevan, is like a different country because it is much more modern.”

The school needs a new heating system, repairs to the roof, windows and doors, fencing and improvements to the infirmary, kitchen, laundry and bathrooms. The cost of all the work is estimated at $90,000.

Already, donations have paid for some small improvement projects, according to the school Web site. Playrooms have been remodeled, a sewing room and program was started and the school has 35 new beds. A donor from Skaneateles gave money to pay for 26 pairs of shoes.
Meaghan and Christopher raised their money by running a 10-kilometer race in Athens, Greece, in November. The race is a companion to the annual Athens marathon, said Mary Anklin, Munro’s daughter.

Munro, 70, has been a runner for 15 years and said she decided to run the 10K after some of her Peace Corps colleagues made plans to run the marathon.
She invited the four Anklins to join her in Athens, and all ran the 10K race. Chris and Mary run regularly, and Meaghan is a member of the Fayetteville-Manlius cross country and indoor track teams.

Christopher runs for recreation and plays football, soccer and lacrosse. He was the first American to cross the 10K finish line, Chris Anklin said, “right ahead of me.”

The siblings wanted to help their grandmother raise money for the school.

“We knew my grandmother was involved in this school,” Meaghan Anklin said. “By running there, it was a good opportunity to raise money.”
With only two weeks to prepare, Meaghan and Christopher sent out 150 letters asking people to sponsor them in the race, mailing them just before they boarded their flight.

“Some of the people sent the letters on to others,” Christopher Anklin said. About 90 people responded and money continues to trickle in, Mary Anklin said.
Each contribution is acknowledged with a thank-you note that has a photograph of Munro and her grandchildren at the finish line in Athens.

“It’s been a cool experience for my kids to get connected with others who have so little,” Mary Anklin said. “This has been an eye-opener for them.”
While living conditions at Gavar Special School are poor, they are not much better for the Peace Corps volunteers.