One morning before school started, the blonde headed first grade boy stood patiently waiting in the office at Bert Raney Elementary. Clutched in his hand was a Ziplock plastic bag containing twelve pennies.
Liz DeBlieck looked across her computer screen at the lad.
“This is for the school,” he said. He held out the bag and handed it to DeBlieck.
“It breaks my heart that this little boy who doesn’t have much is concerned about the status of our school,” DeBlieck explained. “I couldn’t help but think that the budget cuts obviously affect our students.”
The lad is first grader Cameron Jenniges. He is the son of Victor and Holly Zavala of Granite Falls.
To put his random act of giving in perspective it requires a trip back in time to April 2007. On an April afternoon, Holly Zavala had taken her younger children, Cameron and his sister Candace, to the doctor’s office.
“When we were in the doctor’s office a person came in and told us that our house was on fire,” Candace stated.” When the family arrived at their home, the fire department was already on the scene. “We went right home, but we had to stand at the end of the road.”
“I was crying,” said Cameron. His eyes got wider as he remembered the day of the fire. “It was scary because my Winnie the Pooh blanket was in there.” Mom Holly calmed Cameron when she showed him his blanket. She had taken it with them to the doctor’s office. “Mom said that it wouldn’t start on fire, but I was crying anyway because my Playstation was still in my room.”
“No one was hurt. My sister (Desirae Zavala) and my dad weren’t home. Desirae was going to stay home, but she didn’t”, explained Candace.
The fire was contained to the master bedroom, but smoke damage and water damage claimed almost all of the family’s personal belongings.
It was a scary thing.
The two youngsters have had several encounters with “scary things”. Candace admitted that she was scared when she rode on a roller coaster for the first time. Cameron shared that he was scared when he climbed aboard “The Zipper” at the Wood Lake Fair. “I was scared. I did it and it was crazy.” When asked if he would ride “The Zipper” again he said, “No. I would - only when I’m older.”
Life since the fire and the carnival rides continues to be scary for the children. “We’ve had to move twice since the fire,” said their mom. “We’d rent a house, and then it gets sold so we have to move. We’re going to have to move again this weekend.”
“It’s scary to keep moving,” said Candace.
“We don’t like it,” added Cameron. “I have to pack up all my stuff.”
“School isn’t scary. We know we’re safe here,” shared Candace.
Mom Holly admitted that she thinks one of the reasons that the children donated money to the school is because it is a safe zone, an anchor for the children, because it doesn’t change.
After their house fire, many people at school and in the communities donated items and cash to help them start over. Candace’s statement provides a little insight into the youngster’s philosophy of giving. Candace simply stated, “They helped us with the fire; so we helped them back.”
Cameron was more pragmatic about the reason for his donation. He said, “So we have more paper and stuff. We don’t have much paper and stuff.”
The youngsters have first hand memories of some of the donations they got after the fire. “I remember my Sponge Bob puzzle,” shared Cameron. Candace remembers getting a tiny little toy dog that squeaks.
Since the fire, Victor Zavala was laid off his job and has become a full time student at Minnesota West Community and Technical College studying to earn a degree in accounting. Mom Holly is employed full time in Montevideo at Crossings Inn and Suites as a housekeeper and at the front desk. A lesson that will stay with the entire family is that there will always be families out there that need more than they do.
Cameron did not tell his mother about the donation he was planning to make. BRE principal Stacy Hinz told her about the act of generosity. “I was very surprised because he didn’t tell me. But I was glad Cameron decided to do that instead of thinking of himself. It made me feel really glad,” explained Holly. She expressed that dad Victor was astonished and in awe at his son’s actions.
Last week the two children worked together one evening to gather together the resources for another donation to the school. Candace took pennies from her piggy bank, Cameron took pennies from his piggy bank and they found a few pennies on a counter in the living room. Candace found a white envelope, got a slip of paper and printed, “For the school from Candace and Cameron.” They placed twelve pennies in the envelope; Candace placed a small piece of tape on the back to seal the envelope and the two delivered the second donation to the principal’s office. Once again, they did not share their act of giving with their parents.
When asked if taking money that he had been saving to buy stuff for himself and giving it to the school was hard, young Cameron answered, “I’m an electronic guy. I just buy play station games.” He went on to explain that he feels sad when he takes the money from his piggy bank to donate to the school. However, he stated, “It’s really hard. It makes me feel good.”
“My first thought was “what a sweetheart. Cam and his big sister are very giving children. Their smiles are infectious. I applaud Holly and Victor as parents. They have taught their children that generosity can come in pennies and smiles,” BRE Principal Hinz shared about the youngster’s generosity.
Granite Falls, Minn. —
