Making memories

Students at Pilot Point High School have touched the lives of 15 orphans half way across the world.

The students in Connie Johnson’s art class who participated in the non-profit Memory Project painted portraits of the children from photographs and mailed them to Madagascar, where the children live.

The children’s reactions to receiving their portraits were captured on video by Memory Project volunteers. On Tuesday, the Pilot Point students got to watch the video for the first time in class. The students had little to say, but their faces spoke volumes as they recognized the children in the video from their photographs.

“It is more emotional than I expected,” Johnson said to her class. “I almost started crying when I saw it. It’s like, we did that. We did that all the way across the world, giving something to someone we’ll never meet, something that they will never forget. That’s priceless.”

Memory Project coordinates with schools and delivers photographs of children who have faced hardships, along with their names and favorite colors. The non-profit says its goal is to help children feel valued and boost their confidence during their struggles.