Giving Tuesday: LFCDS Alumni Give Back

Lake Forest Country Day School alumni are the products of an early educational emphasis on strong character and responsible citizenship. On this Giving Tuesday, it is fitting to reflect on all of our alumni who have gone on to fulfill various volunteer and community service roles at home and abroad. Our alumni have a vested interest in helping others and are making memorable impacts on people’s lives across the globe.

Below are two examples of young alumni who have recently graduated from LFCDS and are already making inroads as leaders in outreach, empathy, and service.

Karisma Chhabria ’11: Expanding Health Care

Karisma is currently on the Finance Committee of Brown University’s GlobeMed chapter, which is funding a project that will provide free education for women in Kenya. Additionally, Karisma is preparing to volunteer at a clinic in Panama where she will take vital signs and document patient history. This December, Karisma will begin tutoring for the Brown Brain Bee, a regional competition for high school students passionate about neuroscience. Lastly, Karisma was recently offered a position with Health Leads in Providence, a branch of a national organization that delivers healthcare and connects patients to local resources. According to Karisma, “I’m thankful for narratives. Every person has a story, and I feel blessed to have gotten to know some of them through anecdotes from Health Leads Providence, from my Kenyan pen pal in Brown’s GlobeMed partner organization, or even just over a cup of coffee. I like to give back by keeping these stories alive.”

Heather Knobel ’13: Bringing Joyful Learning to Underprivileged Children
While Heather is involved in several volunteer roles with various organizations at Highland Park High School, she engages most of her community service through SCOPE (Summer Camp Opportunities Promote Education). SCOPE is an organization that provides summer camp opportunities for underprivileged children from lower-income communities across the country. Since 1991, SCOPE has welcomed more than 20,000 children to their summer camps. Over the years, Heather has participated in the annual SCOPE Swim-A-Thon, collected and donated camp-related gear for campers, and raised funds and awareness for SCOPE. According to Heather, “SCOPE is an exciting organization that provides a unique opportunity to young people and their families who would not otherwise be able to go to camp and experience independence, leadership, fresh air, character building, experiential learning, and more.”