This article was originally published in The Examiner on Jan. 4, 2018.
By Eleanor Skelton
Staff Writer
Representatives from Magnolia ISD visited Little Cypress-Mauriceville CISD administrators Thursday morning, Dec. 14, with more than just well wishes for a speedy recovery from Tropical Storm Harvey.
They also brought books, dresses for the high school choir and a check with funds raised by the Magnolia ISD as well as their students, staff and community, totaling $54,855, LCM CISD spokesperson Sherry Combs said in a news release.
Shortly after Harvey and the devastating floods in Southeast Texas, Magnolia ISD’s Communication Director Denise Meyers called LCM to offer assistance and begin a partnership with LCM CISD to help with the long road to recovery.
Magnolia ISD videographer Robert Patty and Meyers visited several schools in LCM CISD where students were attending half-day classes, and they interviewed both students and staff about their experiences during Tropical Storm Harvey.
Magnolia ISD turned these video clips into public service announcement on the district’s website, Facebook page, as well as a Harvey Recovery Partnership webpage, magnoliacares.org.
“We are blessed as a district, and our community has been so supportive in helping some of our teachers and staff get back on their feet after Harvey,” Magnolia ISD Superintendent Dr. Todd Stephens said in the news release kicking off the fundraising campaign. “Now is our turn to support a district that has a long recovery process ahead of them this year.”
During their visit on Thursday, LCM CISD principals shared their stories from their campuses with Stephens, Meyers, Assistant Superintendent Jason Bullock, and Superintendent Secretary Chris Hinkelman, Combs said.
“A few common themes shared by all were overwhelming support by parents and community, staff from different campuses developing partnerships and learning from one another, and optimism about the future for their students and schools,” she said.
One principal said a student at their school responded to hearing about Magnolia ISD’s fundraiser by saying: “Let’s do that for someone else!”
“Paying it forward is alive and well in Texas and throughout the United States,” Combs said. “The thousands who have donated so much toward LCM CISD’s recovery is proof of that.”
Eleanor Skelton 