St. Thomas Press Release

St. Thomas Spanish Club About More Than a Different Language!

Houston, TX - April 15, 2005 - With approximately 300 members, the St. Thomas High School Spanish Club has not only become the school’s most popular club, but it has also developed a well-deserved reputation as a great service organization.

Twice a year, on Spanish Independence Day and Cinco de Mayo, Spanish Club students hold a fajita sale during lunch to raise money. The ever-popular fajitas are prepared every year by Blanca Perez, the mother of two St. Thomas graduates. Proceeds from the sale are donated to either the Arbor School or De Madres a Madres. At the end of the 2003-2004 academic year, the Spanish Club donated $500 to the Arbor School, a pioneer school in Houston that “ provides intensive educational intervention, at the least possible cost to parents, for children, birth through age twelve, evidencing developmental delays, or those at risk due to diagnosed handicapping conditions” (Arbor School mission statement). This past September, the club raised $1000 and gave it to De Madres a Madres, a non-profit organization for at-risk pregnant Hispanic women.

Raising money and giving it to such organizations and people in need is only a small part of the work performed by members of the Spanish Club, however. Members spend each year at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center just before Christmas to hang up decorations in the Children’s Pediatric Unit. From hanging up wreaths to putting up and decorating Christmas trees, the students help brighten the lives of the patients there. Students in the club also help package the hospital’s annual cards periodically. These cards are created by children in the hospital through The Children’s Art Project and are sold to benefit the hospital’s research and to fund patient programs.

In addition to its work at M.D. Anderson, the Spanish Club also sets aside a few Saturdays during the year at De Madres a Madres. Members dress as Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny to help pass out food and drinks at the children’s parties. They also do skits and other things to teach mothers about nutrition and potential childhood problems, such as the ingestion of lead.

Spanish Club members also volunteer for their school by having a booth to promote St. Thomas High School at the annual Hispanic Forum’s Career and Education Day held at the George R. Brown Convention Center. Additionally, students volunteer the evening prior to the forum by assisting in setting up for the entire event.

Each year the club also spends a day at the BP Houston Children’s Festival downtown selling tickets, serving drinks, and making itself available to the event’s organizers wherever the club is needed. The Children’s Festival supports Child Advocates, a leader in applying volunteer manpower to ensure abused children involved in the children's protective system have someone designated to speak up on their behalf.

At the American Heart Association Heart Walk, the Spanish Club has participated by distributing maps to those walking, by assisting in setting up sponsor-booths, and by cheering on participants crossing the finish line. The signature annual fund-raising event for the American Heart Association, the Heart Walk promotes physical activity and heart-healthy living in a fun family environment. According to the AHA official website, “this past year 750,000 walkers participate[d] in over 600 events across the country, raising funds to save lives from this country’s No. 1 and No. 3  killers, heart disease and stroke.”

Every other year the Spanish Club is also invited to lend a hand at the Ronald McDonald Gala. The Ronald McDonald House offers a home away from home to the families of children undergoing treatment for cancer and other serious illnesses at the Texas Medical Center.

This year alone the club assisted the American Red Cross; an ill Spring Branch woman too sick to do her own yard work and too poor to pay for lawn services; and an elderly woman from Southwest Houston needing a hand in organizing and cleaning out her garage in order to hold a garage sale.

The Spanish Club has been fortunate to have more than enough members to volunteer – so much so that sometimes it ends up having to turn away some people from volunteering for specific projects! This eagerness to work demonstrates the character of its members and allows the club to work with many organizations in making a large impact on the Houston community.

Along with the work performed for the Houston community at large, the Spanish Club also contributes to the St. Thomas community in various ways. From judging Spanish poetry readings at the annual Middle School Speech and Debate Tournament which St. Thomas hosts, to supporting the school’s Wrestling Program by volunteering at its yearly wrestling tournament on campus, to helping coordinate the school’s Open House, the club is undoubtedly making a difference. Spanish Club members also volunteer at the school’s Fall Auction and Spring Round-up, two fundraising events held each year for student financial assistance. At last year’s Round-up, for instance, the Spanish Club raised $1500 from a mechanical bull it ran. Some of these proceeds were then given to The Arbor School for special chairs for the children.

The club also encourages an understanding and appreciation of Spanish customs and culture and an awareness of current events that impact on Spanish-speaking countries around the world. In order to fulfill this goal, students attend theatrical and musical performances in Spanish, celebrate El Día de Los Muertos (The Day of the Dead) at school, and participate in the annual Cinco de Mayo parade downtown.

The Spanish Club’s sponsor is Mr. Nelson Espitia. He joined the faculty at St. Thomas High School in 2001 and teaches both Spanish I & II. He received his degree in Spanish and Political Science from the University of Houston.

Officers for the 2005– 2006 Year: All – Class of 2006

David Clay – Co-president

Matthew Cire – Co-president

Tommy Wolff – Public Relations

Andrew Comeaux – Public Relations

Nils Granger – Secretary

Ryan Beck – Treasurer

Sean Farrell – Historian

Ryan Pechacek– Hispanic Liaison