Logotech-4-Good May Announcement

School creates memories for students affected by wildfire

Tubbs Fire roared through Northern California in October 2017. The fire killed 23 people and destroyed 2,700 homes.

The fire also destroyed 40 San Miguel Elementary School student homes, leaving them with no mementos from their primary school years. No photos, no class pictures, no school projects remained. Four teachers also lost their homes.

That loss is why the school's PTO wanted to give its 6th grade class a memento of their elementary years. Some of those memories will be preserved when they are loaded onto USB drives.

Logotech has selected the school, located in Santa Rosa, California, as its May Logotech-4-Good mini-grant recipient so students can have those memories back.

Flash Drives Chosen

The school will receive 70 2GB flash drives imprinted with "San Miguel Class of 2019" to hand out at its end-of-year promotion ceremony. Another 70 blank 2GB drives will be given to the school to use as needed.

"This year, we really need this for our kids," said Amanda Stephens, PTO secretary and art docent for the school. Stephens applied for the program via our website.

It's traditional for the PTO to put together a video — a compilation of baby photos, spring pictures and other classroom photos — according to Stephens. For many of those students, however, there are no baby photos to be had. Nearly every pupil and teacher was evacuated from their homes while the fire tore through the community, Stephens said. Few salvaged any mementos.

Families were allowed to return three weeks later. When classes resumed the campus became a temporary location for two other district elementary schools. Those campuses were closed because of environmental smoke and debris damage, according to local news reports.

They lost several pupils, too, as families decided to move rather than rebuild. Others are living out of district while their homes are rebuilt. They are commuting up to 40 minutes to finish their elementary years at San Miguel, she said.

The drives are expected to arrive on May 28, days before the school's May 31 promotion ceremony.

To apply for the Logotech 4 Good program, or to nominate an organization to receive $500 in branded promotional products, visit: Logotech-4-Good