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St. Agnes Walks for Hope

By Anika Shethia, St. Agnes Academy, School Buzz Reporter | February 26, 2020

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Walk-a-thon participants gather around for a picture of the memorable morning. (Photo: Emma Bernshausen)

Nothing shows St. Agnes' giving spirit more than the willingness of so many students to participate in the St. Agnes Star of Hope Walk-a-Thon early in the morning on a holiday.

The walk-a-thon was organized by a group of empowered juniors, who blended their passion for running with their determination to help the homeless population. Beginning in mid-January, they were advertising and urging students to sign up, gaining more participants to make the event a success. And through their efforts of spreading the word and inspiring students around them, the results of the event were rewarding.

At 8:30 a.m. on Feb. 14, the new St. Agnes track was crowded with over 80 participants ready to walk and raise money for Star of Hope, a homeless shelter and community organization. The group was enjoying some breakfast and getting ready to start walking after receiving pledges from donors. Thierry Chu (‘22) raised $800 individually through pledges, which was the most money out of all the participants. After fueling up, students, teachers, and parents started on a walking journey, lapping around the track, helping with each step. Music was blasting and the weather was great, it was the perfect place to be.

Participants dance along to the music and enjoy the walk. (Photo: Emma Bernshausen)

After two hours, the walk-a-thon was complete and participants had walked over a thousand laps in total.

I enjoyed the experience and it gave me a sense of what St. Agnes is really about: helping others and making an impact in the Houston area. The walk-a-thon was a great way to get involved in the St. Agnes community, as well as the Houston community. My friends and I walked 25 laps around the track, leaving us with a feeling that we had served our community, as well as the desire to continue to actively participate in aiding others.

Students felt driven to make a change on a community scale and were able to raise over $7,000. The money earned provides 2,194 meals for the homeless community in Houston. Star of Hope is dedicated to meeting the needs of homeless men, women and their children, with the help of Houston citizens, like St. Agnes students, willing to make a change.