Throughout the entire week, members of Spanish National Honor Society sat in front of the counseling office to collect coins for their first fundraiser of the year. Students were allowed to make donations from Monday, Nov. 13 until Friday, Nov. 17, with the option to donate one dollar on Wednesday, Nov. 15 to wear a hat during the school day. Spanish NHS raised more than $360 in total. Juniors won the class cup event for donating the most coins.

Junior vice president Lauren Rothgeb said that the event’s purpose was to support Puerto Rico in their time of desperation.

“Hurricane Maria left Puerto Rico with a very long rebuilding process and we want to help in whatever way we can,” Rothgeb said.

According to The Atlantic, the category four storm struck the Yabucoa Harbor at 6:15 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 20, destroying multiple homes and stripping the country of necessary resources. The Business Insider also states that while the official death toll is 51, Puerto Rico’s government estimates the exact number of casualties is closer to 900. A majority of the island is currently living without access to electricity or clean water.

Senior president Sabrina Uriarte believes that people should continue to help Puerto Rico because the affected citizens are still in need of a helping hand.

“A lot of people have forgotten about Puerto Rico,” Uriarte said. “It isn’t on the news anymore, but they still need all the help they can get.”

Rothgeb participated in the coin drive to raise awareness of the tragedy and to help students better understand the importance helping others after a natural disaster.

“It’s easy for disasters to pass through our minds quickly when they don’t directly affect us,” Rothgeb said.

To help from afar, the club decided to collaborate with Heart-to-Heart, an international healthcare organization which provides free medical assistance to individuals in need. After the hurricane in Puerto Rico, Heart-to-Heart has worked hard in neglected rural areas and increased the accessibility of essential medicines.

Spanish teacher Jan Good-Bollinger believes that the members did a good job advertising the event and gives credit to a majority of the officers for making their idea of the fundraiser a reality.

“A lot of students helped out with the publicity. They have hung up posters around the school and help out in the mornings,” Good-Bollinger said. “It’s been pretty student driven. They did most of the writing and most of the communicating.”

Uriarte is impressed with the school’s participation and feels proud of the results.

“We raised a lot more money than I thought we would and people seemed to enjoy it,” Uriarte said.