HOPE AFTER THE STORM
Shaw students show their charitable side in the face of destruction
by Mr. Alex Cormier
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The raging winds could do nothing to knock down their faith.
For some students, it's personal.
"When I saw all those people in need, it really touched my heart", reflected Kaden Robichaux, a Senior at Archbishop Shaw. Kaden, like many other Shaw students, has family and friends who were impacted greatly by the storm. "I knew people back in Lafitte and I knew people that needed help... all of them are suffering and there's something I can do to help".
With a strong sense of gratitude and humility, many students offered up their time both in the immediate aftermath and in the long weeks to come.
"We saw a good response of students volunteering, helping out" remarked Mr. Carlos Lucito, the Theology Department Chair and coordinator of student service opportunities. "They were very willing to offer material goods and their time to go out to the places that were affected... even if they themselves were impacted."
Josh Nguyen (Junior) and Jordan Hyunh (Eighth) help to remove debris from a residence in Lafitte, LA.
Courtesy Jennifer Mailhos
Mr. Carlos Lucito lead the group of students who helped in cleanup efforts in Lafitte, LA.
Courtesy Jennifer Mailhos
Their willingness was in no small part due to the very mission of the school.
"As a Shaw community, the focus is Ever Striving, Ever Achieving," said Mr. Lucito. "We want to give ourselves to others; we're service oriented. "
This sentiment was echoed by a number of students who participated in cleanup efforts in Lafitte on Saturday, September 25.
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"We had gone the week before, so seeing the destruction compelled me to go," says Freshman Joshua Collins. For him and his peers, helping out was not just a kind thing to do, but their duty as Christians.
If there's one message nearly all of the students had in common, it was the desire to do more.
"We need to do more," Collins said. "We need to help in the community".
For the 2021-2022 academic year, the Archbishop Shaw community has responded to this need. Thousands of dollars worth of monetary and material donations were collected for not only Hurricane Ida relief but earthquake relief in Haiti as well.
Our Lord spoke to His disciples, reflecting that "the harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few" (Matthew 9:37). The mission for this school year is to develop faithful, committed laborers for the Lord, ready and willing to overcome adversity and respond in great love to the needs of others.
"I like helping people... it was the right thing to do," reflected Daniel Mailhos (Class of 2025). "We got to introduce ourselves [to the homeowners of the property]... they thanked us for helping them".
Photo courtesy Jennifer Mailhos
Joshua Collins (Class of 2025) helping to clean out the debris from Hurricane Ida in Lafitte, LA. Flood waters brought ruined homes while mud made the recovery all the more difficult.
Photo courtesy Jennifer Mailhos
Mr. Alex Cormier is the Theology I educator at Archbishop Shaw. He attended Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, LA receiving a Bachelor of Arts in English and a certification in Philosophy from Saint Joseph Seminary College in Covington, LA.
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