A months-long fundraising effort has been deemed successful as 10 Philadelphia students have reached their fundraising goal to take a trip to Paris, writes Chanel Hill for The Philadelphia Tribune.

The students from YESPhilly Accelerated High School raised a total of over $60,000, which will help cover their airfare, lodging, meals, and other travel expenses.

They received help from Harriett’s Bookshop owner Jeannine A. Cook, who set up a GoFundMe page to raise money. She was inspired to help organize the trip after she herself received a scholarship to study writer and civil rights activist James Baldwin in Paris years ago.

“I came back from that trip thinking about international travel and the ways in which Baldwin talks about how Paris, France, changed his life,” Cook said.

She wanted students to have that same experience, given that many of them have never left Philly.

Kareem Blair is one of those students, and is excited to leave the country for the first time in his life.

“I’m looking forward to trying new foods, making new memories with friends and being able to have a safe environment to learn,” he said.

The idea is for international travel to provide an opportunity for these youth to experience the world without prejudice.

Read more about the efforts that led to the upcoming trip to Paris in The Philadelphia Tribune.

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