Fred Booth Elementary partners with a group of Winter Texans from San Benito’s Fun N Sun RV Resort to help teachers and staff meet the instructional needs of the students on campus.
Winter Texan volunteers, from left, Susan Collins, Jane Kralik, Carolyn Rexroad, Gary Rexroad, and Chuck Rose spend time helping students at Fred Booth Elementary.
As a means of getting students motivated for the upcoming State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) testing, the group of retirees treated students and staff to a motorcycle show on school grounds, giving them an opportunity to touch, feel and admire the two-and-three wheeled vehicles.
The Winter Texans volunteering at the school are retired teachers, principals and librarians, according to Principal Carmen Ramos.
“Our students benefit practicing the English language and it helps reinforce their skills,” Ramos said. “They are there one to two hours per day and come up to three days a week.”
Ramos added that the extra one-on-one assistance serves to benefit students.
“They learn new strategies and they learn math and reading,” she said. “It is a real good opportunity for our kids to have that extra help,” Ramos said. “I feel very blessed to have this group of individuals helping.”
Ramos, who had the chance to get comfortable on a beautiful motorcycle, said that the students had enjoyed this unique event.
“It’s a neat experience. The kids seemed really impressed,” she said.
First grader Luis Cisneros said he was excited to see different types of motorcycles.
“There’s a lot of cool motorcycles I like here,” he said. “One of them looks like a car!”
Fourth grader Melody Quezada said, “I think it’s awesome!”
Chuck Rose finds volunteering at the school a rewarding experience. He has been volunteering at the school since 2009 because he realizes that there is great need to help.
“It’s very rewarding! That’s why we do it,” Rose said. “It helps us. It makes us happy and the kids and the staff are happy, too.”
Jane Kralik, a Winter Texan from Canada and former librarian, said she and her friends enjoy being in San Benito.
“The people here are very welcoming. I wanted to be able to give back and say thank you,” said Kralik. “We know that there is the need to help the teachers and provide one-on-one instruction.”
This marks her second year of volunteering at the school.
“It’s been very rewarding,” Kralik said. “I’ve been working with first graders. I find children miss me when I’m not here.”
For more information about volunteer opportunities, please call Fred Booth Elementary at 361-6860.
Fred Booth Elementary second graders, from left, Victoria Chavez and Adela Najera enjoy spending time with Winter Texan volunteer Shirley Spradlin at the motorcycle rally.