East Texas ministry looks to bless 4,000 students in Uvalde with school supplies

HARRISON COUNTY, Texas (KLTV) - An East Texas ministry looks to be an agent of help and healing after the school shooting that occurred in Uvalde, TX.

Minister Patrick Johnson of J-S.T.A.R. Ministries is collecting school supplies for students in Uvalde. Johnson says he hopes to provide supplies for 4,000 students in the town.

“My heart was just torn seeing the families and what had happened and I know for me I can’t sit still, just like when any natural disaster or anything happens, I have to go and be a part of the healing process, so I began planning shortly thereafter on going down,” Johnson said.

Johnson has already made a trip down to Uvalde bringing toys and doing grief counseling with teachers, students, and community members. He said he wanted to collect school supplies for the students in need.

“One of the things I found out is 60-72% at risk kids there and in the district, you know its a small town kind of like Harleton where I’m from, it’s a close knit community, people of strong faith, and you know school supplies you know, if parents are struggling financially school supplies are a big deal for some whereas if not for others that are financially stable so its a great way of giving back and helping,” Johnson said.

Young people also got involved in the process helping pack boxes of supplies.

“We’ve been packing them, getting them ready, we’re going to ship them and take them all the way to Uvalde as soon as we get everything ready,” said Micah Guzman, a student from Spring Hill ISD.

Johnson said the response has been great with friends, local business owners, the Longview Police Department, and churches all contributing to the drive.

“We’ve been getting a great response, we’ve had about almost 500 backpacks come in yesterday, I got an email today that my other order is coming in today so we’ll have 1,008. I have some ministry partners in San Antonio that are collecting school supplies there so I’ll pick them up on the way, so together everybody collectively working together, we’ll be able to be a blessing to the people of Uvalde and especially the students.” Johnson said.

Johnson said there will be other things going to Uvalde as well such as bicycles, stuffed animals, basketballs, footballs, dolls, and more.

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