The Student Association hosted a fundraiser to help Charles D. Owen High School in Black Mountain, N.C. recover from Hurricane Helene’s landfall in late September.
“We lost drinking water for 53 days,” said Christy Cheek, executive director of Buncombe County Schools Foundation, which serves all schools in Buncombe County, including Charles D. Owen High School.“All of our schools in the school system lost power, they lost water and they lost the internet, and some had physical damage to them.”
Mike Tarjan, assistant principal for student activities, reachedout to Cheek to coordinate the hurricane relief effort between Glenbrook North and Charles D. Owen High School.
Cheek helped GBN select a school in the district to assist and suggested Charles D. Owen High School because it was in an area significantly affected by hurricane flooding, she said.
The road to the school was washed away by the flooding, so a makeshift road had to be built in order to reach the building, Cheek said.
According to Tarjan, other relief efforts have addressed more immediate needs, such as finding housing for students, repairing school infrastructureand providing clothing.
“But what they don’t have money for is rebuilding their things from everyday student life that we [at GBN] are so accustomed to having,” said Tarjan. “Whether it’s rebuilding their band program or getting uniforms and equipment for sports teams, this money just isn’t there for them.”
“We’re raising money to help students have a normal school year and have experiences like prom, like clubs and activities, like band,” Tarjan said.
In order to raise money, the Student Association collected donations outside of Sunset Foods and Jewel-Osco. Customers stopped by the fundraising booths to learn about the damage caused by the hurricane and give money to the Black Mountain community.
Other fundraising events included letter-writing in the SAC for Charles D. Owen students, a school-wide bingo game and a coffee truck during lunches, where 10 percent of profits went directly towards fundraising efforts. On the final day of the fundraiser, alumnus David Gichner (‘23) performed a magic show in the CPA.
“I think that just the outreach from you all as students and the school, just the compassion and the care that you all are showing, it warms my heart and lets us know that there’s such goodness out there,” Cheek said.
The fundraiser created a connection between the GBN and Charles D. Owen communities.
“I know it’s just giving money, but it’s [really] thinking about what other people are going through,” said Tarjan. “And I think that’s important for us to just take pause in what we’re doing in our everyday lives and feel the humanistic side of life and help others when we can.”