Students at Conestogo Public School have turned the loss of one of their classmates into hope for those who are struggling a world away.
Eleven-year-old Grace Wynen died a little over a week after being injured in a car crash in October 2010.
At the time, the sixth grader's mission was to raise money to build a school with running water in Sri Lanka.
Teacher Kendra Platt says "Grace was a true inspiration. She was a global thinker, she was well read, she knew what was going on and she was compassionate for giving."
Now her fellow students have successfully raised the $8,500 needed to achieve the goal, turning the loss into motivation to keep working towards her vision.
Classmate Jacob Drung says "It's kind of neat that we were able to build them a school through our school and it really is children helping children through education."
The students actually far surpassed their original fundraising goal, raising nearly twice the amount anticipated.
It was an emotional time for both students and Grace's parents, Julie and John Wynen.
John says "When Grace came home early in the fall to tell us about the global issues group with Mrs. Platt, she was so pumped up about the clean water project in Sri Lanka. And we were really excited that she was thinking globally."
In the end, it seems the project will leave a mark on both that distant community and the one where Grace lived.
"Conestogo is a very close village and Grace was an integral part of the village," John says. "We will always miss Grace, but having done this will help keep her memory alive
