SFHS Demons moonlighting as angels for the holidays
Football players help with drive collecting food, other donations for needy families
Zach Martinez spent the past nine months waiting to do something “not normal.”
So he stood in a nearly empty parking lot in 30-degree weather, collecting donations to help bring a sense of normalcy for families in need.
That felt like a step in the right direction, he said.
Martinez, a junior at Santa Fe High, was among several members of the football program taking part in a donation drive to collect food, clothing, gift cards and money that will go to families in need during the holidays. While the group is trying to help the less fortunate, Martinez said this simple act of community service also is bringing much-needed joy for those in the football program.
The COVID-19 pandemic is threatening to cancel the football season set to begin in February, and Martinez said simply seeing familiar faces brightened his day.
It beat the same, tired routine of staying at home, he said.
“It just feels good to do something that feels not normal, like go to the gym or just get out of the house and see my teammates,” Martinez said. “And just to know that we are going to help people that are in need, it gives you a good feeling.”
A rotating group of players, parents and coaches spent the past week taking an hour out of their day in the parking lot in front of the Regal Santa Fe movie theater waiting for people to drive up and drop off donations.
Andrew Martinez, Santa Fe High’s head football coach, said the program normally does a donation drive for Thanksgiving, but the pandemic made it difficult to coordinate.
Players and coaches spent much of November conducting workouts as they prepared for a season they may not happen. The state’s public health order has not allowed high school athletes to compete since March, when the first coronavirus were reported.
Andrew Martinez, no relation to Zach Martinez, said community service is an important component to the Santa Fe High program, as he mandated his players commit 14 hours in the offseason toward a cause.
“Usually, we have some volunteer groups that reach out to us, but we weren’t able to do it this time,” Martinez said. “Everyone was worried about everything that was happening, and it made it difficult to do that type of community service.”
The idea of conducting their own donation drive came from meetings with the program’s booster club and with parents. A group of parents took up the cause and coordinated it. Michelle Montoya, the mother of junior center Diego Montoya, used contacts she developed as an appellate paralegal with the state Supreme Court to find families who were struggling.
“There are lines of people at the food bank, and it breaks my heart with all that is going on, with people not having jobs or potentially getting evicted from their homes,” Montoya said. “So, if we can give them some food on the table and something monetary when they have bills to pay, it just makes me feel good because I know I’ve been able to pass this on to people who need this help.”
Montoya said the goal was to help eight families with a dinner, clothing, gift cards and money to help make their Christmas a little brighter. Andrew Martinez said the program received assistance from the Water Boyz Bottling Plant, which also donated gift cards and coats.
Montoya said the drive has collected about $1,350 in gift cards and cash donations, plenty of clothes, and at least a ham or a turkey for 13 families. The team will distribute the items Monday and Tuesday.
The need for help was found close to home this year for the football team. Andrew Martinez said some donations will go to the families of five players. He said the pandemic has affected a significant portion of the team. He estimated about 40 percent of his players have parents or guardians who have lost jobs, seen hours cut or taken a significant pay cut.
Andrew Martinez said issues of food equity are heightened more because affected players who would be getting food when they go to school do not have that outlet since Santa Fe High has been closed since March.
“Whether they are freshmen or seniors, they are aware of what’s happening with each other,” Andrew Martinez said. “I think they are a bit more aware of it now. They realize that it could be a teammate that comes to your house just to go eat because they are not able to have those kinds of resources anymore.”
Senior Matthew Maestas said having a team now is even more important. He said players are checking in with each other to see how they are doing, and Andrew Martinez said he and the coaching staff are following suit.
“That’s top priority for our football program right now,” Maestas said. “We just want to make sure everybody is doing all right. Even if it’s just to get to the football field and throw a couple of passes, you have to check in with everybody.”
Andrew Martinez said the donation drive provided some catharsis for those in the program. It gave him a sense of normalcy that hasn’t been present in a while.
“To see them together doing whatever, it gives you a little smile on your face and it brightens up your day,” the coach said. “It really does help us and I look forward to seeing them and talking to them. There is only so much you can get from Zoom conversations and phone calls.”
Zach Martinez says he feels much the same way, and that spirit of friendship and generosity ignited the spark to brave the cold.