Perk on Main Rasies the Roof

On Thursday, June 30, Perk on Main in Durham hosted two local charities, donating 20 percent of the evenings proceeds to them.

Local restaurants throughout Middlesex County have been participating in Appetite for Life all throughout the month of June. Perk hosted the final event of this year's campaign to raise funds for Middlesex Hostpital's Survivorship Center.

A final fundraising tally will be available next week.

Meanwhile, Marilyn Horn, a retired Spanish teacher at Coginchaug Regional High School, set up a Mexican Market at the cafe to raise money for "Raise the Roof," a fundraiser created to help rebuild a community center in Oaxaca, Mexico.

"It's just a great cause to be involved with because the little you can do can mean so much to the children there. And we become very good friends with the people there," said Horn, who is a member of the Oaxaca Street Children Grassroots, Inc. Board of Directors.

OSCG was founded in 1996 when an American couple on vacation realized the extent of impoverished and uneducated children. The non-profit charity currently serves over 600 of the poorest children in Oaxaca, Mexico.

"I used to go to Oaxaca a lot. I had organized some school and adult trips" said Horn.

It was then that Horn picked up a flier explaining the effort to expand education opportunities for poor children in the area. She organized a school trip for the Coginchaug Regional Spanish Honor Society, which started sponsoring a 14-year-old student there. Twelve years later, the student is now attending a university.

At least five children in the program are sponsored by Durham residents and more are considering participating, says Horn. The cost of sponsoring one student for a year of grade school education is $160. The cost of sponsoring one student for a year of high school or university education is $250.

For more information on how to be a donor, sponsor or volunteer, visit the Oaxaca Streetchildren Grassroots Organization's website.