September 8, 2005


Fifth grader jumps into action, collects $4,000 for victims

By Julie Davis Berry
Executive Editor

After watching days of heart-wrenching TV coverage of the devastation Hurricane Katrina wrought on the residents of the Gulf Coast, 10-year-old Harry Kendall felt compelled to help the victims in the only way he could. He grabbed his sisters and went door to door last Sunday, asking neighbors to fill a tin can with donations for the victims.

Harry’s Hurricane Katrina crew collected donations for storm victims all day on Labor Day outside Safeway at Almaden Center. They are, from left, Sarah Kendall, Erica Arnold, Megan Caviglia, Michelle Kirkley, Harry Kendall, Laura Kendall, Garrett Arnold and Catherine Walker.

The neighbors responded with praise for Harry and the girls by opening their wallets and checkbooks. After walking the length of Via Mateo, the group raised an impressive $100. But Harry felt he needed to do more.

So Monday morning he awakened early and headed to Safeway at Almaden Center with his mother, sisters and neighborhood friends in tow. Of course, how could the manager turn the serious, tow-headed boy down? The kids held up handmade signs and collected donations all day. His sisters, 12-year-old Castil-lero student Sarah and 15-year-old Leland student Laura, and neighbors 13-year-old Castillero student Catherine Walker and 12-year-old Bret Harte student Megan Caviglia and her 10-year-old step-sister Erica Arnold (visiting from Stockton) worked tirelessly by Harry’s side all day long.

“People were very polite,” said Harry, a Simonds fifth grader who speaks with a charming British accent. “They all would thank us for doing such a wonderful thing to help the victims of the hurricane.”

Harry enlisted his buddies from his Boy Scout Troop Den 12 to help out and they covered an extended lunch break for the original crew. The Boy Scouts included fellow Simonds students Michael Kirkley, Chad Goodman, Andrew Oberhelman and Alex Popoff, and Los Alamitos student and Alex Horwege.

Outside Safeway Harry and his crew collected a whopping $1,600 and after adding $200 from his generous Via Mateo neighbors, the final total was $1,800. Luckily, Harry has friends in high places. A neighbor, Janet Romero, who works for Cisco Systems, pitched in $200 to make it an even $2,000 and then arranged for Cisco to pitch in another $1,000. Then, Harry’s troop leader Tom Kirkley, who works for Sun Microsystems, arranged for Sun to pitch in an additional $1,000. That brought the grand total Red Cross donation from this one group effort to an impressive $4,000!

“All of us at Simonds are so proud of these students—and former students—for taking the initiative and working so hard to raise money for the hurricane victims,” said Simonds Principal Linda Kakes. “We know that the primary job of a school is to educate children to become responsible citizens. These fifth graders certainly exemplify that ideal.”