Montessori Students Net $14K for Charity

Donations from a May jog-a-thon sponsored by , a local preschool, elementary and middle school in Lake Forest, are expected to top $14,000 by the end of this week.

According to Stacey Constantian, president of the Parent Teacher Organization at Montessori on the Lake, thousands of dollars in donations have poured in to help the nonprofit organization One Heart for Hope since the May 20 race at .

So far, "$13,550 has been turned in," she said by email. "Another $1,000 has been promised to be turned in by the end of the week."

Since 2005, students at Montessori on the Lake (Lake Forest) and Appletree Montessori (Mission Viejo) have put on an annual jog-a-thon to raise money for organizations that help children in need.

This year, 386 students ages 2 to 13 ran laps to help out One Heart for Hope, a Foothill-Ranch based nonprofit that provides assistance to needy children in the Philippines.

Constantian said that at the event, six-year-old Jonathon Chi of Lake Forest said he decided to donate his own money "because I like helping people because it’s nice.” 

Mission Viejo resident Cambria DiCenzo, 13, agreed, Constantian said.

“It feels good knowing I’m doing something right and making someone else’s life better. I want to help make a change in the world,” Cambria said.

In past years, students have donated the race's proceeds to South Africa-based nonprofits Playpumps International and Funjwa Primary School, as well as international organizations Freedom From Hunger, Free Wheelchair Mission and Global Ministries/Kiva.

The donations collected this year mean that the students have sent more than $100,000 to children in need around the world since the annual event began in 2005, Constantian added.

To donate, call 949-855-5630.