[Editor’s Note: The results are in! The total amount raised was $1881.76 for all the classes. In first place was Josh Dinkler’s classes, whose point total was -3952, and total amount raised was $506.58. Second place was Steven Perfect’s classes, whose point total was -21215, and $533.55 raised. In last place was Kathy Leaf’s class, whose point total was -45167, though they raised the most amount of money, totaling at $841.63. March 10, 2010]

In Dirianba, Nicaragua, a mother attempted to drown her son due to insufficient funds to raise him in poverty. Now, this same boy is living at an orphanage run by Mustard Seed Community, a non-profit organization for mentally and physically disabled children.

This past summer, Foothill senior Kyle Lansden visited this orphanage on a mission trip with his church.

“I wanted to go abroad and really make a difference,” said Lansden.

As Lansden’s Hero Project, Foothill’s Spanish department has begun a fundraiser for the orphanage in the form of a penny war. Each Spanish teacher, Josh Dinkler, Steven Perfect, and Kathy Leaf, has a water jug outside their classroom where students can donate their money. Each penny counts as one point; however, any silver coin or paper money will deduct that amount of points from the total.

The goal for each classroom is to have the most pennies and the least number of deducted points by Friday, March 5th. The winning class will receive a movie day where they can just hang out and relax.

100% of the profit will go directly to Mustard Seed Community, which will help continue to run the orphanage and support the children.

Lansden’s experience at Dirianba has taught him an important lesson.

“Sometimes less is more,” he said. “The people there have nothing, but they’re happy.”