Two years after the unexpected death of 4-year-old Shelby Goldstein, a memorial fund is helping give 300 children in Ndola, Zambia, the chance to do something she never did — attend grammar school.

Construction of the Shelby Goldstein Memorial School was completed in December and classes began in January. More than 300 children attend the school, which serves grades one through seven. The school has five classrooms and a kitchen and each child is provided with a hot meal daily.

Being able to help so many vulnerable children live a better life is a fitting tribute to one who’s life was short but full of adventure and learning, said Shelby’s aunt, Renee Iyer, who, with her husband Shankar, established the Shelby Goldstein Memorial Fund.

Shelby, who attended St. Mary’s Catholic Preschool in Kenosha, died on Valentine’s Day 2008, just days after her fourth birthday. Her parents had the difficult task of taking her off life support after an unexpected medical issue caused her to go into cardiac arrest and resulted in brain damage.

Fund in her name

“Losing Shelby was devastating,” Renee said. “Watching (her parents) Rachelle and Gregg suffer the loss was heart-breaking. We felt helpless. Shankar and I wanted to do something that would leave a lasting legacy in her honor.”

With the help of friends and family, the fund was infused with $12,000 in 2008. It was presented to Rachelle and Gregg on the first anniversary of Shelby’s death in February 2009 with the idea of continuing to grow it for a big purpose.

“We were totally surprised,” Rachelle, of Kenosha, said of the gift. “Overwhelmed doesn’t even express our feelings. We have always known what a wonderful family we have; this was just another example of how our family has been there for us. We couldn’t continue to be strong without their love and support.”

Something for kids

Finding a meaningful cause wasn’t difficult.

“We wanted to do something for children, but really didn’t know what to do,” Renee said. “We were invited by a friend to a fundraising event for Spark Ventures. Spark’s main project at the time was raising funds to build a school in Zambia. We met one of the founders of Spark that night and were very impressed. It just seemed meant to be.”

Gregg and Rachelle held a fundraiser at Capt. Mike’s in Kenosha, where $1,600 was collected for the fund. The Iyers held a second fundraiser at their home in Chicago and raised approximately $30,000, surpassing the $25,000 pledge made to Spark Ventures.

“We were anxious about collecting enough,” Renee said. “We never anticipated that we would raise the total amount with holding just the two fundraisers. We were overwhelmed by the support we received from the people in our lives.”

Brady Josephson, director of resources for Spark Ventures, said the school is a combined effort of Spark and its partner Hope Ministries, which already was operating a community school in Zambia. Hope Ministries had been renting a building from the government and was often pushed out at a moment’s notice if it was needed for something else.

“They would be told the police are coming to use the building and would have to suspend class and move out,” Josephson said. “From an educational standpoint, they said, ‘We need our own school.’”

Growing enrollment

Josephson said many community schools come and go in Zambia, but this one was seeing growing enrollment. A fourth class needed to be added and sessions were being held outside to accommodate the interest.

“They said a new school would send the message it is a legitimate school and is here to stay,” he said.

Spark was in the midst of its “Igniting Hope — Building a Future” campaign and the donation from the Shelby Goldstein Memorial Fund helped Spark meet its goal of raising $150,000 to build and begin to operate the new school.

“Shelby loved learning and loved other children, it just felt right,” Rachelle said. “We also liked the idea of letting our son Gavin know that, even though it is unfortunate that Shelby died, many children around the world have misfortunes of their own. It is a privilege to be able to go to school and we will give many children that opportunity.”

The Iyers and Goldsteins plan to travel to Ndola in June for the first time on a Spark Ventures “transformation trip” for a dedication ceremony. Dimensions of Learning Academy, Gavin’s school, is planning a supply drive to collect items for them to bring to the school.

Rachelle said the family has plans to maintain the memorial fund to operate a college scholarship grant program for young adults who lost a sibling or a parent as a child.