With quarantine well underway, many students have begun to explore ways in which they can aid those around them that are in need or are serving for the greater good. A few Saxons in particular have gone above and beyond to offer their support and show thanks to members of their community. 

Senior Victoria Li’s family owns a restaurant in the area. In response to the pandemic, Li has begun an initiative called Fueling Lifesavers which works to bring food to healthcare professionals in local hospitals and medical centers. 

“I couldn’t allow myself to go from day to day aimlessly counting the days since quarantine started while knowing that people are dying and suffering while I did nothing. I saw the words “feeling like you can’t do a lot is a bad reason not to do a little.” That just absolutely blew me away, and it should,” Li said. “Hearing my mom talk about how difficult it is with the restaurant workers now and watching her daily “arming up” (with antiseptics, protective procedures, etc.) to go to the restaurant (currently no contact, of course) gave me an idea.” 

She has fused her passion for food with her desire to make a difference, brightening the days of local healthcare workers. 

“Delivering food to hospitals, fueling the frontline lifesavers, that was what I decided I should do. For one, it is the way I know best and love – food! But also, warm hearty meals can bring our healthcare workers some comfort in these times of terrible uncertainty,” Li said. “These are people with family and children to take care of, yet they risk their own safety for our health – the least I can do is make sure they don’t have to worry about food for a day.” 

After beginning the initiative, Li has developed a wide web of people wanting to help make her dreams for the effort a reality. 

“The concept is quite simple: I gather donations from the community, myself, and interested groups and work with restaurants to bring meals to hospitals,” Li said. “It was really surprising and astonishing how kind some people were – whether it was the donors or the restaurants, it really warmed my heart how generous many people were! I have received a lot of love from the recipients of these meals, friends and family who know about this, and from groups that fundraise for these initiatives. The very kind words and smiles of the people are what consistently energizes me to continue this effort.”  

You can support Li’s work by visiting her Instagram account @victoriali! While Li has been working to show appreciation for frontline workers, other students are supporting people who are affected by the pandemic in other ways.  

Junior Hannah Abele has created an organization called Memorable Messages that aims to bring joy to elderly people that are currently living in nursing homes. 

“I was inspired to start my non-profit after hearing about how nursing homes would no longer allow visitors into the facilities to visit loved ones,” Abele said. “During a time like this, it is nice to be able to see loved ones so I wanted to try and bring a sense of love and companionship to the elderly stuck in isolation and unable to see loved ones.” 

Similarly to Li, Abele has seen an outpouring of support for her efforts. Not only is this aid coming from the local community, but from all over the world. 

“I have received a lot of support for the organization from all over the country. There have been multiple people who have reached out wondering how they can help and it is so inspiring to see how many people write letters and what they have to say,” Abele said. “There have even been letters from people in other countries which has been amazing to see. The organization has only been running for three weeks now so we are still expanding and hopefully will have more of an impact in the community soon.” 

To learn more and support Abele’s effort, visit her webpage, http://www.memorablemessages.org/. As seen by Li and Abele, students can build upon their strengths and resources to make a difference in many ways. Small acts of kindness go a long way during unsettling times like this. 

“Whether it be at home, walking through your neighborhood, in a store, etc., if you see something that you can make a little better, do it. And even though you might have a mask on, smile and say hi to those around you,” Langley Counselor Mr. Johnson said. “This type of charity, the type you can’t quantify and put into X2VOL, is so important now. It won’t earn you a seal on your diploma or a cord to wear at graduation, but it will help make you an even better person and be meaningful to those around you.”