McCOOK (SNR) – Students at St. Patrick School in McCook raised more than $800 for Hope of the Poor, a non-profit Nebraska-based organization with a mission outreach in Mexico City.
Hope of the Poor was started by Craig Johring who grew up in Nebraska and now lives in Mexico City where he cares for the poor. The mission helps get drug-addicted kids off the streets, works to end human trafficking, rescues homeless families, finds employment for people, distributes food, and raises money so that children living in the dump can attend school.
Father Carson Kain, a priest of the Diocese of Lincoln who grew up in McCook, has led a mission trip to Mexico City for the past three years to work alongside Johring and other volunteers.
Teachers showed students pictures of the people who lived in dumps and on the streets. Inspired to help the people, students volunteered to do extra chores at home to earn money to donate to the mission. The students washed dishes, performed outdoor chores, cleaned houses, and some had paying jobs and gave generously from their paychecks.
Amazed at her fourth-grade daughter’s compassion, Barbara Bortner reported, one mother said her daughter had been saving for a long time for a new pair of brand-name sneakers. The girl had saved about half of the money needed to buy the shoes, but felt inclined to donate the saved money to Hope of the Poor, and start over.
Third- and fourth-grade students hosted a bake sale after Sunday Masses. The fourth-grade students sold birdhouses they made from gourds during religion classes.
“Having sacrificed their own time and efforts,” Bortner said, “all of the students have truly gained great satisfaction in knowing that they’ve made a difference in the lives of those less fortunate than themselves. Their sacrifices allowed them to rise above worldliness and encounter Christ. What a great entrance into the Easter season!”
