Three Southridge High School students serve on the board of the Harambee Centre, a Beaverton-connected nonprofit marking 25 years of partnerships with East African communities.

Cameron Kays, Emily Payne and Adrienne Gassawy joined the board as the organization prepares for its 25th anniversary benefit dinner Sunday, Oct. 18, at Embassy Suites by Hilton Portland Tigard, 9000 S.W. Washington Square Road, as the Valley Times first reported.

Southridge and St. Andrew's Secondary School in Matale, Uganda, have been sister schools since 2003, according to the Harambee Centre website. Over the years, Southridge students have contributed roughly $20,000 toward building a science lab at St. Andrew's and donated books, computers and money for internet service. The two schools have connected through pen pal programs, video calls and in-person cultural exchanges.

In 2024, Southridge engineering and physics teacher Dave Holz took two teams of students to St. Andrew's.

Beaverton's Mountainside High School also has a sister-school relationship with Chwele Girls High School in Kenya, a partnership that began in September 2018.

Co-founder Grace Kuto, who was born in Chwele, Kenya, started the Harambee Centre to foster partnerships across American and African cultures. She met her husband Paul while both attended Portland State University, only to discover he had lived two villages away from her in Kenya. Kuto spent 47 years in the Portland area before moving to North Carolina four years ago.

"This year we are sponsoring 62 students in Kenya and Uganda combined," Kuto told the Valley Times in an Oct. 13 interview. The organization covers tuition while families provide school supplies.

The Harambee Centre also runs the Najijali Project, a vocational training program for teenage mothers launched in 2022 with a nearly $180,000 Rotary Foundation grant. "Najijali" means "I care for myself" in Swahili. Each graduate receives a sewing machine or hair salon equipment to start a business. The third cohort of 25 students is set to graduate in November.

Dinner proceeds support scholarships for students in Africa. A college scholarship of $800 covers one academic year of tuition, and a high school scholarship costs $500 per year. The Rotary Club of Tigard has provided two $2,000 education scholarships for teenage mothers in Africa each of the last four years and will present this year's awards at the dinner.

The Oct. 18 celebration runs from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. A silent auction and African market open at 1:30 p.m., followed by the meal and program at 2:30 p.m. The event features African cuisine, performances and trivia. Suggested donation is $80 per person. Online registration closes Friday, Oct. 16. Walk-ins are welcome if seats remain.