North Shore teens helping Texas ‘one family at a time’

You know how when a tragedy is in the news you instantly think of someone you know who might be affected? North Shore teens Hannah and Jack Button thought of their beloved childhood babysitter. Kelsey Richvalsky DeMarce, a Waialua High and UH grad, is now a teacher at Sheridan Elementary in Katy, Texas, one of the areas hardest hit by Hurricane Harvey.

The siblings reached out to DeMarce, who said her school was in good shape but many of the families were struggling.

“Some people are fine, but some people have lost everything, including their homes, their cars and all of their belongings,” DeMarce told Hannah. “One of our teachers had to push her kids down their street on an air mattress in chest-high water. Another teacher has only two sets of clothes left, which she alternates every day.”

DeMarce sent a photo of one of her colleagues, Sheikkaye Lee, making her escape through floodwaters with her children. The teacher held a smile on her face to let her babies know they’d be OK. That was enough to get Hannah going.

“We can’t help all the people in Texas, but we can help one family at a time, and especially the teachers, so they can get the school back up and going,” Hannah said.

The Button siblings have long been involved in community service. They started a nonprofit called Dream of a Better World to raise money for kids and families in need. The seeds of their service began when their mom Diane was going through breast cancer in 2008 and they were on the receiving end of help from neighbors and friends. In the spirit of giving back, the two started raising money by writing a cookbook called “Special Delivery” filled with recipes for food that had been delivered to them by neighbors and friends while their mom was recovering.

Hannah is 17 and a senior at Island Pacific Academy. Jack is a 19-year-old sophomore at University of California Santa Barbara. They now keep a blog and have developed a following of people who support their projects, both in Hawaii and around the world. “We call our blog ‘It’s Our Turn Now’ because we feel strongly that it is time for our generation to stand up and make a difference in the world,” Jack said.

In order to be effective, the Buttons try to target specific urgent needs. Not every family needs the same things, though some families need just about everything.

“The counselor at Sheridan Elementary and Kelsey know these teachers, kids and families and are helping us decide how to help each family, one by one,” Hannah said. “So far, 10 displaced families will be getting school uniforms and shoes. Some need a down payment for a car, some need furniture, some need clothes and food. One family has no money for food or bills because the father’s workplace flooded and he could not work. So we helped them through this first month until they can get back on their feet.”

So far, they have sent $19,500 and are collecting more donations.

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ON THE NET

>> itsourturnnow.blogspot.com

>> Dream of a Better World P.O. Box 455, Haleiwa, HI 96712

Reach Lee Cataluna at 529-4315 or lcataluna@staradvertiser.com.