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Donations By The Bus Load

Delta Hope House receives record breaking donations

The Thanksgiving holiday season has been overwhelmingly special for the volunteers at the Delta Hope House in Cooper, Texas.

Friday, Nov.  18 was beyond ordinary – it was extraordinary – as they received 1.3 tons of donated food from North Hopkins Independent School District’s Beta Club “Block the Door” event. Students were challenged to bring enough canned items as well as flour, sugar, jelly and peanut butter to block the classroom door of a teacher. 

If successful they would not have to attend that class. The challenge took on a new form as North Hopkins ISD Superintendent Dr. Darin Jolly allowed the “theft” of cans in exchange for money donated. This created a new level of calculation for the students in their construction of the stacks of cans.

The bus load of donations arrived at the Delta Hope House on Friday morning. Volunteers were elated with joy when they discovered how full the bus was. It took the representing students and teachers nearly two hours to unload and weigh shopping cart full of boxes of goods.

Delta Hope House Distribution Director Ethel Nethery was so excited and thankful for the help the students gave in the processing of the donations. There were several boxes weighing over 100 pounds which took teamwork to carry into the building.

“Our North Hopkins Panthers exhibited unprecedented service and teamwork in this collection of cans for our community. It was a joy to observe the process of our ‘Block the Door’ challenge among our classrooms and grade levels. It was extremely rewarding to experience our young ladies and gentlemen making memories in our school, while making a difference in our society during this holiday season,” said North Hopkins ISD Superintendent Dr. Darin Jolly. “Although test scores and unfounded legislative mandates often lead news stories for education, moments like these will shape the life-long impact of school days for North Hopkins students and educators. We're grateful.”

The giving didn’t stop at just the one school. Cooper Elementary KC Club also sponsored an 18 day canned good drive. The winning class received a special tour of the Delta Hope House and a donut breakfast upon delivering the collected canned goods.

This is sponsored by the KC Club. This Club was created as part of the Rachel’s Challenge Program standing for Kindness and Compassion.

“Our 3rd, 4th and 5th grade teachers helped with nominating two students from each class who model kindness and compassion campus wide,” explained Jeanette Burnett, Elementary Campus Counselor. “These students will be our KC Club leaders and will be our key helpers in many of our Rachel’s Challenge activities and programs.”

Cooper Elementary provided nearly the same amount as North Hopkins ISD did. The Delta Hope House also received donations from Fannindel and Commerce ISDs just before the Thanksgiving holiday.

“They all did really well,” said Operations Director Laura Gillean, who has been working with the Delta Hope House for a year. She was so proud of the students she wished she could reward each one of them.

The Delta Hope House has had a huge increase in the number of people they assist with only about 35 volunteers throughout the month.

“We had 80 served last Thursday. It was just a 32 client average each week,” added Gillean. They serve to qualified clients on Thursdays from 9 a.m. to noon each week from their “grocery store” interior designed building on 440 SW 3rd Street across from the CISD Administration building in Cooper.

In 2014 the food pantry went from going from a 240-square foot donated building on Dallas Avenue to a 6,300-square feet equipped with several different stations.

This food pantry believes in making sure its clients retain their sense of self-worth. Each person must go through a qualification process before they are allowed to go shopping down the aisles at the Delta Hope House.

The items range from bottle water to fresh fruits to cans of soup. The Delta Hope House has refrigerators with grocery supplies too. It is all kept organized with an efficient layout.

There was also appreciation extended to Delta County Sheriff Ricky Smith and his staff for providing inmate work crew help - mopping, sweeping, buffing and waxing the floors and restocking shelves.

The Delta Hope House always welcomes volunteers.

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