Penn for UNICEF seeks gifts

College senior Steve Escaler will not be going door to door for candy tomorrow. Instead, he will be looking to make the United Nations Children's Fund a whole lot richer -- and needy kids a whole lot happier. Last April, Escaler founded Penn for UNICEF, a group designed to "raise awareness and support for children in the developing nations." UNICEF, which was founded in 1946 in order to provide emergency relief to children around the world, has raised more than $63 million in Halloween donations since 1955. More than 2 million trick-or-treaters participate every year. College and Wharton senior Lalit Aggarwal, the current president of Penn for UNICEF, and the 50 students who have joined "P 4 U" since September have planned a number of projects designed to involve area schoolchildren in fundraising and educational activities. During one recent project, club members held assemblies for students at the Hamilton Middle School, the Rittenhouse Academy and the Shipley Middle School. The Penn for UNICEF members spoke to the students about the history of UNICEF and tried to heighten interest and awareness for the Halloween penny collection. UNICEF will further these efforts by donating 10 new computers to the school which collects the most money on Halloween. How much of a difference will this program make? Although the Halloween proceeds won't solve world's hunger problems, Engineering junior Anjali Vira, the host of an upcoming assembly at the Hamilton Elementary school, sees her goal as "re-encouraging UNICEF in the city," and was quick to point out the tremendous contribution that trick-or-treaters make when "for merely two cents a day we can relieve a child of dehydration." The activities of Penn for UNICEF supplement the efforts of the Philadelphia Committee for UNICEF, a subcommittee to the national committee for UNICEF. A second Halloween-oriented program will involve fundraising on Penn's campus during Homecoming. "With Homecoming Saturday falling on Halloween, there is tremendous potential here," Aggarwal said. "We are trying to recruit kids through various tutoring and mentoring programs to help us." He also plans on having trick-or-treaters collect donations at various athletic events during the day. Aside from trick-or-treating, Aggarwal wants to bring a celebrity speaker to Penn's campus in order to increase UNICEF's visibility among the student body. Possible guests include actresses Sarah Jessica Parker, Meg Ryan and actor Laurence Fishburne, all of whom are current spokespeople for UNICEF. Aggarwal also wants to sell greeting cards in an effort to increase proceeds. All of this has led Escaler, who didn't have high expectations for the organization because it was still in its infancy, to say he is "highly impressed with all that Penn for UNICEF has accomplished." Anyone interested in participating in PENN for UNICEF should email unicef@dolphin.upenn.edu.