Student-run service still finds ways to help, even with campus closed
BRAWLEY — Confidentiality has always been a priority for The Village at Brawley Union High School.
The student-led club on campus has always been as discreet as possible while completing its mission: providing clothing and items for students in need at no cost.
When the club started in 2016, co-advisor Beth Carson would typically approach students quietly, take them aside and have them pick up bags of items after school.
Now, the club and its mission are widely accepted by the student population, and the stigma of getting help from The Village has been removed.
The club operates out of a classroom on the second floor of BUHS’ science building, where students or their parents can pick from the array of clothing organized on shelves.
On Thursday, however, club members found themselves gathered in a room at Brownie’s Diner on Main Street. The diner provided the room at no cost.
The Village has been operating virtually since all school campuses in the county closed March 17.
Carson, co-advisor Angie Ibarra and five club student officers — Richard Torres, Sharron Lee, Ariana Perez, Bella Rebollar and Julitza Alvarez — were at Brownie’s putting together 20 bags.
The first 20 students to complete an online survey The Village posted were chosen as recipients. The online survey, created by club President Torres, was offered in both English and Spanish.
The survey asked students to identify their needs from choices of school supplies, toiletries or undergarments. The club recently purchased these items with donated funds.
Each bag was packed by The Village members specifically for each student and their request.
The students and their parents will stop by Brownie’s to receive their bag via curbside pickup.
The club’s layer of confidentiality remained intact during Thursday’s bag-filling session.
Ibarra converted the names of each receiving student to a number, which were used to mark the bags. That way club officers packing knew only a number and recipients’ identities remained private.
That level of organization with time and experience. At the start, the club simply operated out of a classroom filled with numerous trash bags filled with donated clothing. Over time, students and the club’s advisors have finetuned the operation to resemble a thrift store.
The classroom eventually was organized to offer clothes for all ages and non-perishable food. The service is available to all students and their families. It is also available to Brawley Elementary School District students and their parents.
In July, Carson and Ibarra donated all the food items in the room to the non-profit Feed the Need. The clothes in the room, however, will be accessible again once the BUHS campus reopens.
The classroom is divided into a variety of clothing sections, including men’s clothing, women’s clothing, job interview clothing, prom clothing and even baby clothing.
It became evident this year the amount of donated clothing is too much for club members to keep track of by memory, so online spreadsheet was created this year to log the inventory.
Modifying this spreadsheet is something that can be done from home, which some club members do while the campus remains closed.
The club has been meeting periodically online via Google Meets. The club had 45 members last year, and currently has an all-time high of 67.
A YouTube channel was created by The Village this year. On the channel, club members post online videos with technological tips, such as how to install Zoom on a Chromebook.
“Our students, our parents are struggling with technology,” Ibarra said.