The beaming smiles of Joel and Jisel Carrasco
“Hey! I’m ready for school!” says Allen Taylor (6)
C. J. Davis (8) gets a trim by volunteer hairstylist Leesa Stafford.
Jan McGowen served up drinks to those waiting for a haircut.
Lions Club vision screenings were given by Gloria Iberra and Harold Tannahill.
Nicole Ramo (4 yr. old) has a good hold on her new backpack.
Lions Club vision screenings were given by Gloria Iberra and Harold Tannahill.
Calm before the storm: Susan Myers and Marsha Cooper get the backpacks ready for the kids.
Bernadette Cardenas folds children’s clothes neatly for the St. Vincent de Paul.Society at the Fiesta.
Back to School Fiesta offers school supplies
Kids were looking forward to going back to school on Saturday with a new backpack, haircut, clothes, a Payless gift card and more at the annual Back to School Fiesta held by the Barnabas Connection at the United Methodist Church. The look of wonder on the kids faces whether 4 or 13 years old, was priceless. It was funny to watch the kids pick out their backpacks, moms then try to hold the backpacks and then the kid’s grabbing them and putting them on.
Kids might have been a little apprehensive about going back to school, but with school supplies and other freebies it had to put a smile on every single student in attendance. The Fiesta has been held for twelve years and the entire community seems to step up to the plate to help. Local hairstylists giving the students free haircuts, Lions Club were giving free eyesight screenings, Rotary Club passed out books, Society of St Vincent De Paul passed out gently used clothing, En Confianza passing out dental supplies.
Also helping with the program, Wimberley Community Civic Club, Amigos de Jesus, HEB, the Presbyterian Church, Cypress Creek Church, St. Mary’s Catholic Church, ACE Hardware, Ozona Bank, D&D Insurance and countless other family and individual donations.
“There were 438 pre-registered students, the most we ever had,” Tracy Sommers, Executive Director of Barnabas Connection said. “It’s our largest ever. We were so excited to serve over 500 students and their families! We could not have done this without the support of our community, donors and volunteers.”
Each of the volunteers knew what their assigned task were and were busy tasking care of their responsibilities. With so many children around it might seem like chaos, but the volunteers were up to the task.
Everyone had on their happy face, but on Wednesday morning, the first day of school, those smiles are soon to be gone for most students.
Photos by Gary Zupancic