The Matthew Freeman Project: Pens & Paper For Peace campaign officially launched nationwide over the Memorial holiday weekend. Surely, Arts On The Coast members have heard about this initiative and can easily realize how important it could be for children all over the world. As artists, we know how, not only are pens, pencils and paper required to educate, but they are also the key ingredients to teaching children how to express their creative ideas, stretch their imagination and find the artist inside. Support this if you can!
As published by the Coastal Source – On this Memorial Day, we remember a hometown hero and fulfill the dream of a fallen marine from Richmond Hill.
U.S. marine captain Matthew Freeman, 29, lost his life while serving in Afghanistan last August. During his time there, Freeman quickly developed a plan to help the Afghan school children. On Monday, Freeman’s family witnessed his dream become reality and go national during a special ceremony held at J.F. Gregory Park. ”I’m excited that we’re finally moving to a point where it’s national, that we can make a difference in these war torn areas, changing the lives of these children,” stated Lisa Freeman, Matthew’s mother.
Lisa says her son cared deeply for the children he encountered during his time in Afghanistan. ”He wanted to make a difference in their education. He saw there was a lack of literacy,” stated Lisa.
Just two days before Freeman died, he called his mother with one simple request. ”He called me to say, ‘mom, can you get something going quickly. I’ve given away all my pens,” stated Lisa. It didn’t take long before Lisa started the Matthew Freeman Project: Pens & Paper for Peace–a campaign aimed at collecting school supplies for school children in war torn countries. The campaign has now extended to states beyond Georgia.
“We have commitments in Florida, in Connecticut, in Kentucky, Mississippi,” stated Jim Bunn, a project volunteer. Bunn says the goal of the campaign is to change the negative views of the Afghan people and says it starts first with children. ”In the late nineties, hatred of the west was being taught, and those graduates of those schools were the people who became al-Qaida and the Taliban,” stated Bunn.
As Freeman’s vision continues to expand nationally, his mother hopes to carry on his legacy of making a positive difference by improving the lives of others.
The Matthew Freeman Project is a nonprofit group which is dependent on donations. To donate, visit freemanproject.org.
