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This story was originally published in the Sampson Independent.
A simple Facebook post from Hobbton’s Carla Sutton looking to help raise money to buy graduation caps and gowns for students at a western North Carolina high school exploded into an outpouring of community support that saw Sutton and her students reach their goal in just a week.
The outreach resulted in 114 graduating seniors at Mitchell High School receiving assistance in the cost of buying their caps and gowns, a financial boon for teenagers whose families had been hit hard after Hurricane Helene ravaged the western part of the state earlier this year.
The initiative began with just a conversation between Sutton and Mitchell Principal Cole Chester regarding support for their dire needs. The school was fortunately spared from the devastation but Chester relayed to Sutton that many of his students had lost everything in the wake of Hurricane Helene.
It was during those talks that Chester emphasized how students were struggling and that many might struggle to meet even the basic needs surrounding their upcoming graduation. That touched Sutton’s heart and was the catalyst for her social media post seeking aid in adopting Mitchell High seniors to raise money for their graduation gear.
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“Several years ago, we (Hobbton High) adopted Jones County when there was a hurricane,” Sutton recalled during a recent interview. “Their school had a lot of flooding, and so we adopted that school to help them with things they needed at that dire time. After this hurricane (Helene), we talked about adopting another school, but there were so many fundraisers and things right after Helene, we just didn’t do anything right away.”
During the wait, Hobbton Assistant Principal Becky Hines approached Sutton with information about an assistance program from N.C. State University, which connected her with Mitchell High.
“I emailed them, and they sent back (the name of) Mitchell High School with the principal’s contact information; I emailed him, and then we started a conversation.”
Surprisingly, Sutton said, the principal told her they weren’t actually taking any donations at that time because they were to capacity from other contributions that had been made.
“We talked on the phone, and these were his words, ‘I do not want to sound ungrateful, but please, we cannot accept any more items because our school is full right now. We don’t have anywhere else to store anything,’” Sutton recalled. “He then told me what they really needed was money, but that’s kind of a hard thing for school to provide.
“So I asked what were some things that he thought students were lacking, or things they might not be able to buy this year because of their home situations,” she said. “He mentioned a concern might be caps and gowns because many of his students lost everything in the devastation.”
It was, Sutton said, a realization, that hit home.
“That really resonated with me, because I’m in charge of the caps and gowns here at Hobbton, as the liaison between the company, and every year, it is hard for our own students to even purchase caps and gowns,” she stressed.
Michael Warren, Hobbton principal, said helping students struggling with graduation costs was a natural fit for the Wildcat family, particularly since staff and community members often help their own students with expenses.
“We typically have a handful of folks who will jump in to help, and it’s teachers a lot of times,” he acknowledged. “Teachers will say, ‘if you’ve got anybody that couldn’t pay for all of their graduation needs, or maybe they paid a down payment, then couldn’t pay the rest, I’ll handle the loose ends.’ We’ve got folks in the neighborhood and staff that will say — ‘I’ll take care of the rest of that’ — that happens even on a regular basis for our students here.”
Knowing that, Sutton requested Warren consider taking up the Mitchell High project, an idea, the principal said, that was really a no-brainer for him. The project launched quietly on Hobbton’s Facebook page, with a simple call for donations.
The initial response was modest, with only 44 students being adopted by the middle of the week, a fact that had Chester somewhat concerned, considering the number in his senior student body. Sutton reassured him, saying if there was one thing she knew for certain it was that when a call to action went out, Sampson County answers.
“He (Chester) was worried that we were not going to be able to provide donations for everyone. I was like, ‘no sir, you don’t realize how our community comes together. If I tell you this will happen, I promise you it will.’”
It was a statement truer than even Sutton could have imagined.
That same night, she added a thermometer graphic to the call to action post, showing how many students were left to be adopted. In an instant, Sutton said, the total doubled, the generosity started pouring in from everywhere. Donations came from alumni, local businesses and even strangers who happened to stumble across the post.
“I remember that before I went to bed that night, we went from 44 to 89; it was nothing to get from 89 to 114 after that. I can’t say enough good stuff about this community,” she gushed, tears welling in her eyes.
A teary-eyed Warren agreed. “This community never ceases to amaze me,” he attested. “If there’s a need — whether it’s for a fundraiser, disaster relief or something like this — people step up. They give what they can, no questions asked.”
Warren also revealed what he called a touching connection between these two communities — Mitchell and Sampson. In the immediate aftermath of Helene, he said, local emergency services actually deployed crews and equipment to Mitchell County to assist with recovery efforts.
That same supporting spirit carried on through the cap and gown project with local fire crews adopting five seniors, themselves.
Sutton also mentioned that among Hobbton alumni, there was one who simply walked into the school and adopted four seniors and left a heartfelt note saying, “I’m a graduate of this school, and I want to help.” Another such graduate was living in Washington, D.C. and joyfully became a donor.
Once the ball got rolling, it took them only a week to get each Mitchell senior adopted.
“I made the post on the Monday morning of Nov. 25 and by Dec. 2 all the seniors had been adopted,” Sutton stressed.
There was a fair number of parents who were part of the donations as well. Among them was Sonia Garcia. While she wasn’t present, he children and Hobbton High students spoke of their mother’s generosity and what it meant to be part of a community that gives to students much like themselves.
“My mom’s the one who donated. I think that was really nice of her, because obviously, due to the suffering caused by all the hurricane stuff,” Henry Jorge said. “People don’t have stuff at all anymore there, so I thought it was really sweet. What she did is awesome and it just feels amazing knowing she gave.
“It’s pretty sweet what we were doing, because I feel like there’s many schools that wouldn’t have thought about doing this, because it’s not their problem, he added. “That’s what I love about our school, it’s always looking out for other people.”
Denisse Jorge shared her thoughts as well.
”I feel like my mom’s a person that’s very good at the heart and she likes to help people out,” she said. “Here, it’s a very small community, but we tend to help each other out and that feels pretty good.”
Mitchell High and its seniors are at the heart of this entire project and while there were many who wished to share gratitude, Chester spoke on their behalf.
“We’re unbelievably grateful for everything that they’ve done for us,” the Mitchell principal said. “Senior year is one of the most expensive years of school, and just to have that burden taken off of families during a time like this has been a real blessing to so many in our community. I have spoke with several of our teachers in the building, and everybody’s just incredibly thankful for the generosity.
“Carla Sutton, she’s the one who reached out and set all this up; we are very thankful to her,” Chester added. “I don’t exactly know how she raised the funds, but I know it sounded as if there were a couple businesses, the community and people all over the area who donated. So on behalf of Mitchell High School, our students, our community, we’re just very thankful for everything that everyone in that area that donated towards this cause has done.”
