Doing a good deed is always a rewarding thing. And for one high school in Texas, it is only right that good deeds are rewarded right away.
In the midst of the pandemic, several students, staff, and their families at the Linda Tutt High School in Sanger, Texas found themselves in need of food and necessities. It was a hard time and people within the institution were much affected by the crisis.
As a response to this need, the high school thought of a way to address the concern by creating a grocery store that would cater to the needs of the students, the staff, and their families. But how will they be able to pay for their purchases if they are experiencing financial problems because of the pandemic?
The school decided to let the students completely run the store. How? By doing good deeds.
Cash is never accepted in this store. The students need to earn points that they can use for purchasing the things they need at home. They get the points by doing acts of kindness such as cleaning around the school and other good deeds. Positive office referrals turn into good points, making it possible for the students in need to finally get to buy basic necessities from the store.
“It’s not something that you see every day in a school building,” said school principal Anthony Love. “I think a big part of it is about empowering our students, because many of them come from low socioeconomic families that need just a little extra support with food.”
The store was made possible thanks to the joint efforts of the local nonprofit organization First Refuge Ministries, the Texas Health Resources, and Albertson’s grocery store. Principal Love shared how he was initially approached by Paul Juarez, executive director of First Refuge Ministries, and Dr. Ann Hughes, the director of student intervention for Sanger Independent School District.
“They approached me about a grant that they wanted to apply for through Texas Health Resources, about possibly putting a grocery store inside a school,” Principal Love shared further.
The store is open from Monday to Wednesday, ready to cater to the students and staff within the district of the school.
On Tuesday evenings, volunteers help the public to access the grocery store thru curbside pickup. Everyone is truly doing their best to help out the people in need in these trying times.
On Fridays, the high school works together with the Backpack Program to provide food for the children on weekends.
“Partnering with them, we’re able to provide additional food and supplies that the families may need,” Love explained.
The store is entirely run by students. they keep the premises clean, stacking food on the shelves and making sure everything is in order, including inventory tracking based on the points earned for all the good deeds done by people.
“I think the most exciting part of it is just teaching our kids job skills that they can carry with them as they graduate high school and move on into the world,” Principal Love added. “Students are really the key piece to it.”
What a unique and inspiring way to teach the students about generosity, kindness, and the reality of life. It is indeed moving to know that certain people and movements are genuinely concerned about the community and by involving students in this kind of set-up, they are also being taught the importance of being humane and caring for one another.
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