Students rally to eradicate landmines

Beacon School students and Col. Perry Baltimore with CHAMPS mine-detection dog, Dino.
Beacon School students and Col. Perry Baltimore with CHAMPS mine-detection dog, Dino.

Students at the Beacon School in Stamford recently learned about land mines from Col. Perry Baltimore of the Virginia-based Marshall Legacy Institute, which is named for and modeled after the post-World War II Marshall Plan. The students are participating in the institute”™s Children Against Mines Program, called CHAMPS.

As part of the initiative, the students met a mine-detecting dog named Dino, a German shepherd that just returned from duty in Afghanistan.

The CHAMPS program was created to educate students in the U.S. about the devastation of landmines. Beacon students learned that the most effective method of landmine detection is performed with dogs trained as expert sniffers. CHAMPS also includes a collaborative program. Students in mine-affected countries communicate with students in the US and together they help children hurt by landmines.

“Imagine going outside to play in your back yard if everywhere you step could cause an explosion, possibly ending your life,” said Beacon seventh-grader Jack von Riesemann. “These dogs save children”™s lives and help people in war-torn countries feel safe again. Students at Beacon came up with the idea to sell puppy merchandise to support this important organization.”

Each CHAMPS campaign aims to raise awareness about landmines lets children participate in the solution by contributing money they raise through bake sales and the like. The money goes to sponsoring a dog, which is named for the children”™s state, town or school. One-hundred percent of the money raised by CHAMPS participants goes to the purchase and training of the dogs, the school reported. Students can follow the training and deployment of their sponsored dog on the Marshall Legacy Institute website.

The Marshall Legacy Institute was founded in 1997, the 50th anniversary year of the post-World War II Marshall Plan. The institute”™s goal is the eradication of landmines worldwide.

The Beacon School is an accredited, coed, independent school for intellectually curious learners in grades 3-12. For more information, contact Meredith Hafer, the head of school, at 203-200-7244 or mhafer@beacon-ct.org.