The holiday season is a time of giving, but a group of Dorchester students recently took that idea to a whole new level.  The children involved in Project D.E.E.P. (the Dorchester Educational Enrichment Program) were asked last month to write about what gifts they would give to the world if they could.  The students, all in grades five through eight, proved that their youth does not make them blind to the world's problems.  Their essays showed that they are just as thoughtful and compassionate as the best of us.  

These children might have asked for iPods or cell phones or video games for themselves this year, but they knew that the world needed so much more.  World peace was the most popular gift among these compositions, while many students also gave food to the hungry, shelter to the homeless, and money to the poor. We would all be quite lucky if just one of these holiday wishes came true.  

The three essays which were judged to be the best appear below.

- John Hanlon, Executive Director

Project D.E.E.P.

A Cure for Cancer

By Mollie Mannion &endash; Grade 5

St. Ann's School

If I could give the world one gift this Christmas it would be a cure for cancer. There are so many different types of cancers that people get, and every one of us has been touched by this illness at some point in our lives. My gift would heal every type of cancer whether in men, women or children. It seems like more and more families are suffering from this disease than ever in the past, and I wish I could do something about it.

I would give this gift of healing because cancer is a worldwide problem. Even though we have doctors and scientists working very hard and getting close to finding a cure, people are still suffering and families are heart-broken everyday from the loss of loved ones. Through the years we have found cures and medicines for most diseases but have still not completely wiped out cancer. Granted survival rates have increased greatly over the past fifty years with the help of donations to charities such as the Jimmy Fund, but I want the whole world to be cancer-free.

This is why the world needs my gift right away, so the millions of people suffering right now will be cured. It seems so simple that it is frustrating. We came up with every type of vaccine that we receive as a baby to wipe out other illnesses, but we cannot rid the world of cancer.

In our world, technology has advanced so much over the years. For instance, you can now call your relatives in Ireland from Boston at the push of a button. We can send an instant message to our friends through the computer at the click of a mouse. We can fly anywhere in the world on an airplane, yet we cannot take the pain and suffering of cancer out of a body.

Our scientists and doctors are trying everyday and there are so many wonderful charities out there making money to continue with the research, but I truly wish I could speed up the process by giving the world my Christmas gift. When it received my gift, the world would definitely be a brighter place. So many lives would be touched. The physical pain and suffering of the men, women and children would be taken away along with the emotional suffering of the family and friends there to support them. Children would keep their moms, dads, aunts, uncles, nanas and grandpas around a lot longer. Without this illness families would be happier, and I think that would make the whole world happier, so I wish I could give this gift.

The Gift of Education

By Gabe Edelman - Grade 5

Neighborhood House Charter School

In the U.S. and the rest of the world many families suffer greatly due to a lack of education. In the world today 275 million never attended or completed a primary school education. Roughly 870 million adults in the world are illiterate. I would give the world the gift of education this holiday season because there would be far less poverty, better job opportunities, and major advances in the medical and technological fields. Education goes beyond the borders of school and helps to achieve peace, justice and equality.

With the gift of education this holiday season, the number of impoverished families would greatly decrease. By granting people the gift of equal education, everyone would be able to succeed enough to provide for his or her family's needs. People who are poor often do not have the money they need to obtain an education. Impoverished people are often illiterate; therefore, they cannot obtain the middle-class jobs that would help to support their family. Education alone would help to provide the basic needs to succeed, better living standards, and a brighter future for the poor and the illiterate.

Education would provide people with the tools to have equal opportunities. Statistics prove that people with better educations make far more money throughout their lives. People who graduate college make on average a million dollars more than people who do not graduate college. Equal job opportunities would help to abolish such a vast range in the social classes. The rich would not be filthy rich, and the poor would not be dirt poor.

The more educated people are, the more chances there would be to have major medical and technological breakthroughs. With more people educated more people would be able to become doctors. Those doctors would be able to find cures for currently incurable diseases, such as cancer or AIDS. Technological advances could be made that would help to provide better living standards. Education would not only help to provide better lives, but it would help to save lives.

The world needs the gift of education because it would make the world a better place for everyone. Education has no downside, only positive outcomes. Education would provide equal opportunities, help to diminish poverty, and make advancements in the medical and technological fields. The world would be smarter, more equal, and have all-around better living conditions with the gift of education.

My Gift of Peace

By Michela Juliano - Grade 6

St. Ann's School

The gift I would like to give the world this holiday season, if I could, would be the gift of peace. The world we live in today is a scary, sad place for many people. For example, the war in Iraq affects both people in the Middle East and us at home in America. The Iraqi civilians live with soldiers carrying guns around them everyday. They see loved ones dying right in front of them, while here in America, we are losing sons, daughters, fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters to the war.

The world needs my gift of peace so that people can live their everyday lives without being in fear of dying themselves or losing someone they love. The world needs peace so that civilians and government officials can use their talents to work on important things, like medical research and solving world hunger.

If I could give the gift of peace to this world, people of all religions could learn from one another. No one religion would feel threatened by the ideas and beliefs of the other. No one group would feel they need to impose their own religious values on another group. With the gift of peace everyone would respect each other and how they choose to live.

If the world would choose to accept my gift of peace it would be a happier place to live for me and others all over the world. People could go to sleep at night without worrying that their home will be bombed or wondering if their loved ones, serving in the military, are safe. Scientists would be discovering a cure for cancer rather than a new nuclear bomb. Others would be figuring out ways to make sure people starving in Africa had enough food to eat rather than planning how to bomb or poison the countries they hate.

I would give the world the gift of peace, if I could, so that my family and every family, all over the world, could live in harmony. Every country could work together to help solve problems all over the world. Then our generation, and the many generations to come after us, would have peaceful, happier lives.