Stephen Strong '06

Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Rita, the Southeast Asian tsunami, the Pakistani earthquake: these are just a few of the natural disasters that have wreaked havoc across the world recently. In the wake of a year marked by such unprecedented agony, hardship, and destruction, the Community Service Board is doing a great deal to aid the many victims in need.

The Community Service Board has spent much time constructing a plan to assist the victims of Hurricane Katrina. One way it plans to help provide relief is by aiding Archbishop Hannan High School, our newly designated sponsored school. Located just seven miles from New Orleans in Metairie, Louisiana, Archbishop Hannan High School was ravaged not only by Hurricane Katrina and the ensuing floods, but also by oil spills from a local oil refinery.

"We lost 100 percent of everything." said Principal John Serio. "All of the contents of the school-computers, desks, books, supplies, appliances-were wiped out."

Archbishop Hannan High School will need to be rebuilt, making life even more difficult for the students, many of whom have already lost their families, homes, and, as Serio said, "sense of belonging." Most of this lost sense of belonging takes place in the form of apprehension for the future. At a school where quite a number of the pupils are working-class, many students feel it incumbent upon themselves to receive a quality education.

"Our families are blue-collar; our students are first generation college bound students; our hope was grounded in the existence of this school," said Serio.

In order to help expedite Archbishop Hannan High School's restoration, the Community Service Board has several projects devoted to providing it with aid.

One of these projects is in conjunction with physics teacher Ben Bakker, who proposed dispatching refurbished computers to Louisiana. For the past two summers, Mr. Bakker has not only sent close to 40 refurbished computers to an impoverished school in South Africa, but has also devoted more than 100 hours to teaching both students and faculty members how to use them. Mr. Bakker is confident that we will be able to send around 25 computers to Archbishop Hannan High School, "enough to stock a computer lab."

Another project involves sending used textbooks to the school. Academic Dean Nils Ahbel firmly believes that this project could be very successful.

"If we make a concerted effort as a community, we might be able to send as many as a thousand textbooks," said Mr. Ahbel.

With this undertaking, Mr. Ahbel feels it is imperative for members of the Deerfield community to donate an adequate number of the same textbooks.

"Getting two or three copies of one type of textbook is probably not very helpful. The biggest impact would come if we could send at least one classroom set, or about thirty textbooks," said Mr. Ahbel.

The Community Service Board is hopeful that these endeavors will build an infrastructure from which more projects and programs can burgeon.

Director of Community Service Mara Whalen is currently arranging a trip in March to Archbishop Hannan High School. During this time, students and faculty will be able to collectively share goods and help with the reconstruction of the school. Even if these projects do not result in the immediate reopening of Archbishop Hannan High School, they will help alleviate some of the emotional distress that has affected every member of the school.

As Serio said, "The fact that there are people in Massachusetts, strangers who care about us and want to help us, is a tremendous psychological boost. We can't thank you enough. We are so blessed."

As published in the November 9, 2005 issue of the Deerfield Scroll, the monthly newspaper of Deerfield Academy.