The annual Pennies for Panzi campaign at Tyrone High School will take place from January 22 to February 2.

The campaign, organized by the Youth Action Network (YAN), pits high school social studies classes against each other in a fundraising competition for the Panzi Hospital in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

YAN works to raise both awareness and money for the Panzi Hospital, located in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).  The hospital serves women wartime rape survivors and their children.  The hospital’s leader, Dr. Denis Mukwege, has received many international awards for his humanitarian work, including one from the U.S. State Department and he has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Two years ago Dr. Mukwege filmed a short video thank-you for the students of the Tyrone Area High School.  Just before the Christmas break, YAN received another thank you email from the president of the Panzi Foundation USA, Mr. Tony Gambino.

For the competition, students are challenged to bring as many pennies as possible to their social studies class, with each penny counting as a point.  Any silver or paper currency put into that class’s container by students in another class deducts that equal amount of points from a class’s total.  Classes compete either to raise the most in pennies or the most overall dollar amount.

The winning two classes get a pizza party courtesy of YAN.

All of the funds raised are donated to the DRC where they are used to purchase materials needed by the hospital from the local economy.

“YAN members have been raising public awareness through social media, in-house public service announcements, and special programs for the student body for many years now,” said YAN president Elina Lure.

Tyrone High School has been supporting the Panzi Hospital since 2009, donating over $10,000 in total.  The money was initially used to help install plumbing, but over the years the funding has been directed to helping the children of the women survivors with school supplies.

YAN also raises funds for the hospital through their annual Community Halloween event at the high school.  Half of the Halloween funds and all of those raised through the penny campaign are sent to Panzi Foundation USA in May.

YAN also raises money for the local Tyrone Food Bank and this year they donated funds for the American Red Cross Relief Fund

“There is no better way to teach our students about international issues, compassion, and tolerance than through hands-on activities provided through the YAN organization,” said YAN co-adviser Tracy Redinger.