by Elly Beauchamp | staff writer
On August 25, Hurricane Harvey hit the shores of Texas with winds topping 130 miles per hour. By the time the storm had worn down, over 30,000 people were refugees of the storm, most without a home to go back to. All across the county, schools and business have been donating clothing, food, and supplies to the people affected by the hurricane.
“We never want to see someone going through a tough time, especially if you’re so close. People have family in Houston and in all of those cities, so you just want to help out, [and] give back to the community,” Kyra Rose said.
Vice Presidents of Key Club Kyra Rose and Crystal Troung are a few of the students that are helping collect donations.
“I think at a time right now we are really divided as a county with everything going on in politics, everything that’s happening on social media and hurricane Harvey is just something that we can unite on and it’s a good cause and it’s a local cause too,” Troung said .
Students can donate nonperishable foods, baby food, diapers, flashlights, batteries, hygiene products, cleaning supplies, trash bags, bottled water and more to to the Welcome Center or in any classroom.
“One person makes a lot of difference. If just one person donates, maybe their friend will donate just because they’re donating and other people will donate too, so it’s a domino effect,” Troung said .
Some have even gone farther to help those displaced by Hurricane Harvey. Adelin Blackmon went to help some family friends after the hurricane hit to clean up their pottery shop.
“It was kind of heartbreaking because you see all these people, they’ve lost their homes, they’ve lost their families and friends, and pretty much lost everything and then you’re here and you’re super fortunate because here in San Antonio the hurricane didn’t hit. I felt really good to go out and help the community, just knowing that we had an impact on them,” Blackmon said.
The theatre program, hosted by the theatre teacher Megan Thompson, is also giving students affected by the hurricane a chance to attend the International Thespians Society, a convention for all the theatre students across the state of texas.
“At the thespian’s convention they will have the opportunity to take workshops from people who are leaders in the industry either in the technical theatre world or the acting world and they have the chance to compete in what are called individual events and so those would be things like monologue or costume design or hair and makeup design or duet acting or solo musical,” Thompson said.
The theatre program is helping sponsor the students by helping schools who can’t pay for some of the fees and by volunteering to be a helper thespian group, which assists groups that need help going to the convention.
“It’s a really good opportunity and what I really think is one of the best things about it is you get to see the theatre students from across the state of Texas are all the same really, it’s like you find your people which is both terrifying and wonderful.” Thompson said.
After being challenged by Steele High school and responding on Twitter, Johnson varsity girls’ basketball team has been taking up donations for the victims of Hurricane Harvey.
“They made a video and they challenged us and they challenged all the other schools in their district and so when we accepted the challenge we challenged all of the schools in our district and a school outside of our district,” Head coach, Stephanie Desmarais said
All students are encouraged to donate and lend a hand to the people of Houston and all of those along the coast. All the donations collected will go to those who need them most and can’t get those products themselves.
“It’s really easy to fall and to give up and fall into a slump after your house is destroyed, you don’t want to work you just want to give up, but then you have other people helping you so just keep going,” Troung said .
