Ysleta Community Learning Center’s Response
to Communities in Crisis
by Maria Cesnik
The Ysleta Community Learning Center has a long and well established tradition
of responding to crisis and assisting those less fortunate. When the horror
of 9/11 was unleashed upon the United States, our students reacted much as
the rest of the nation. They grieved the human losses and wept for the survivors
of the victims’ families, but they found great comfort in taking up
a collection and donating the proceeds to the American Red Cross. They could
not travel to New York and do anything personally, but through their donations
they felt that they were helping with the relief efforts.
Teachers incorporated newspapers and magazine articles into their lesson
plans and our hallway bulletin boards displayed a wide range of students’ work
and emotional reactions expressed in paragraphs and compositions, collages,
and drawings.
The Tsunami in December of 2004 also had a strong impact on our teachers
and students. Again, newspapers and magazines were used to teach, learn,
work, and grieve the huge loss of lives and to learn more about that remote
part of the globe.
More recent and much closer to home was the devastating hurricane Katrina
that affected Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas this year. Our
students donated $1,363.62 to the American Red Cross for the victims of
the natural disaster.
There were smaller, poignant stories of selflessness within the greater
one. For example, a fourteen year old daughter of displaced workers who
are students here had been saving change in a coffee can to buy a cake
for her fifteenth birthday celebration next year. Since her parents had
lost their jobs, the young lady had settled for a simple cake and given
up on the idea of having the entire “Quinceañera,” a
traditional ceremony so common for the fifteenth birthday for girls of
Mexican descent. However, when she heard that our school was taking voluntary
contributions to assist the homeless in New Orleans, she asked her parents
to bring the can of change to school and donate it, thus giving up even
the cake for which she had been saving so diligently. The money was around
sixty dollars and it was the largest single donation.
When the rest of our students became aware of this unselfish giving, incredible
acts of appreciation and kindness took place: a professional cake maker
offered to donate a cake for her birthday party next year, a gentleman
who owns a discotheque offered to play for free at the “Quinceañera” dance;
others offered food, a party hall, and so on! Still, the young lady insisted
that the helping of others was just that and she did not expect or want
anything in return. In fact, she asked that the cake be made now and taken
to the El Paso Convention Center to be shared among the evacuee children
and families from New Orleans who were temporarily housed there.
Hurricanes Rita and Wilma were closely read about and discussed, but we
decided against taking up monetary collections for the simple reason that
the great majority of our students are unemployed, some living in public
housing and having financial difficulties of their own. We do believe that
they would have donated their last nickel if asked, but we had to draw
a line somewhere.
Upon the request of our teachers and students who felt very strongly about
it, an exception was made for the victims of Hurricane Stan, which hit
Southern Mexico and Central American countries in early October. Our students
were insistent about it since the majority of them are originally from
Mexico and felt that the hurricane victims in their country needed and
deserved the same attention and help given to the Katrina victims in the
United States.
When it was all said and done, the collection for the people of Chiapas,
Mexico’s southernmost state, totaled $321.66. These monies too were
donated through the American Red Cross and earmarked specifically for Chiapas.
Perhaps the fact that Stan’s victims and devastation were not as
visible on American television as Katrina’s along with “hurricane
fatigue” explains the smaller contribution. Another factor was that
most people had given so generously to Katrina’s victims that they
were possibly not able to give again so soon at the same level.
Still, with all the giving that our students have done this semester,
they responded positively again in early November to our canned food drive.
The food and dry goods collected were distributed to 24 needy families
among our own students here at the center. Additionally, some students,
teachers, staff, and administrators pitched in financially to make it possible
for us to provide a turkey for each of those 24 families.
All these events and activities have brought all of us a bit closer as
we realize our helplessness and vulnerability to nature’s capricious
ways and to life’s unexpected turns. These experiences have taught
many people how to give graciously and others how to receive gracefully.
A true learning experience indeed!
When we reflect upon all these disasters and human tragedy, the underlying
theme that seems to be common to all of them is the solidarity that springs
forth from within the human spirit and manifests itself through a great
willingness to help and lighten others’ burdens in some way, however
small.
About the Author
Maria J. Cesnik has been the Insructional Coordinator for the Ysleta
Community Learning Center for the past 7 years. She has a Masters in
Curriculum and Instruction/ESL from Ball State University. Prior to her
adult education work, she taught in both elementary and secondary schools.
She also taught ESL in a college setting for 14 years.
  
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