RADFORD -- Radford University student Haley Schmitz, a dance education major from Northern Virginia, is not one to back down from a challenge. She believes one person can make a difference and if a few more join in the cause, lives can be transformed. That’s one of the reasons she is an advocate for Invisible Children’s Schools-to-Schools project.

Schools-to-Schools is a book-drive initiative that benefits Ugandan children who have survived the tragedies of war and, at times, been the weapons used in the war.

Before Thanksgiving break, Schmitz was at the Meadowbrook Public Library in Shawsville gathering donated books. “I started this last semester on my own and now have 15 to 20 people who help me consistently. I feel good about it.”

(IN THE PHOTO: RU students Haley Schmitz, left, and Jessica Ratliff collect books for shipment to children in Uganda.)

The nonprofit Invisible Children program began after three filmmakers traveled to Uganda in 2003 in search of a human-interest story. What they saw on their journey changed their lives and would ultimately change younger lives. The children they met were described as both weapons and victims. They returned to their home state of California and produced the film Invisible Children: Rough Cut, and after word spread, people began to ask how they could help.

The Schools-to-Schools project meets the basic needs in the area where  schools are to be built. Wells, food and farming supplies are at the top of the priority list. Once those needs have been met, work can begin on getting the proper supplies, which include books for learning.

With 10 boxes of books already donated, Schmitz and her team hope to have a shipment to send to Uganda in late January. They are organizing a book drive on campus during final exams in December. Schmitz said, “It’s not just me that’s excited now. Others feel the same way. I know that next semester will be the best so far.”

Invisible Children issued this statement about their efforts in Uganda: “Our approach to humanitarian work is founded in the strength and intelligence of the Ugandan community. We learned early on it was not only important but also essential to heed the wisdom of people that had not only lived in the war but were surviving it. People who would know better than anyone what the greatest needs were and the best ways to meet them.”

To learn more about opportunities to help in the RU book drive, e-mail Schmitz at hschmitz@radford.edu.