News

Mothers make lunches to raise money for tuition assistance

Hispanic foods served on Fridays supports Trinity Catholic School in Fort Smith

Published: April 25, 2022   

By Maryanne Meyerriecks
Fort Smith Correspondent

Maryanne Meyerriecks

Trinity seventh-graders Ava Edwards (left) and Karlee Rusin get pupusas for lunch at Trinity Catholic School, prepared by volunteers Agueda Guerrero and Angie Manjarrez, accompanied by 3-year-old Andrew Manjarrez, April 10.

Maryanne Meyerriecks

Trinity seventh-graders Ava Edwards (left) and Karlee Rusin get pupusas for lunch at Trinity Catholic School, prepared by volunteers Agueda Guerrero and Angie Manjarrez, accompanied by 3-year-old Andrew Manjarrez, April 10.

Every Friday, students at Trinity Catholic School in Fort Smith get a taste of Hispanic culture.

Parent Agueda Guerrero leads a group of volunteers who cook lunch for the students to raise money for the school’s tuition assistance fund.

While the school buys the supplies, a group of mothers prepare the food for some of the 212 students. On a typical Friday, they might serve grilled chicken with Mexican rice or pupusas, a flatbread traditionally made in Central America.

While Trinity requires every family to volunteer 10 to 15 hours a year, Guerrero and her helpers — Angie Manjarrez, Lucy Juarez and Lorena Garcia — share their time and talent every week.

“These ladies do a lot for our school,” Spanish teacher Manuel Ordoñez said. “They taught my students how to make pupusas. What a way to immerse them into the Spanish culture.”

The Friday lunch crew was led for many years by Azucena Castillo while her children attended Trinity, and she encouraged Guerrero to take her place last year.

“I’ve always helped with cooking,” Guerrero said. “I helped at St. Boniface School until it closed. My daughter Ingrid (Ariola) is in eighth grade, and I will stay with Trinity until my younger daughter Ashley (now a fourth-grader at Christ the King) graduates. I love Catholic schools because of the way they teach and treat the kids. Academics are really important, and I want a really good education for my children.”

Guerrero and Lorena Garcia also provide take-out service at their parish, St. Boniface Church, every Wednesday night during children’s religious education classes to raise funds for youth education and programs.

On April 2, they staffed the Hispanic table at the school’s Taste of Trinity fundraiser.

“It is the best international buffet in town,” school secretary Gloria Garcia said. “We have foods from all our students’ cultures, German, Italian, Hispanic, Indian, Vietnamese and entertainment by our band and choir. We embrace and respect every culture and make sure our students respect one another.”

Trinity offers many volunteer opportunities, from mowing the grounds and completing building maintenance projects to driving buses and transporting band equipment. 

“That’s how Catholic schools survive, by people who love us and don’t ask for anything in return,” principal Dr. Karen Hollenbeck said. “People make those sacrifices because they know what Catholic schools are about. Families who have children here and believe in our mission are gracious to help us, and we are terribly grateful.”

School secretary Gloria Garcia said mothers who speak only a little English sometimes feel there are not many ways they can help the school, but the Friday lunch crew and their occasional helpers prove that every parent can be involved, and all their skills are valuable.

“The people who cook on Friday really take a mission to heart because they believe in what we have going on, and they want to make sure that they are not only sharing their culture, but also helping students who might need some extra tuition assistance so they put in hours and hours of work and then the money that they make is donated back to the school. We are so blessed and fortunate to have them,” Hollenbeck said.

Click for the Catholic Schools Herald, April 2022 index 

Please read our Comments Policy before posting.