I don’t think anybody deserves to suffer like that.
Huntley, who spent 19 days in Dominica this past summer as part of a study-abroad program through BroadReach, is holding a lunchtime bake sale at Goddard Academy this week.
She hopes to raise $500 for ShelterBox, an international disaster relief charity that provides temporary shelter and life-saving supplies to displaced families.
Last weekend, Huntley and two friends – Kassidy Ballinger and Morgan Hoskins – baked batches upon batches of brownies, blondies, cookies, fudge, cookies and rice crispy treats. They’re selling them at school – during the brief sliver of time when sweets are allowed – and plan to send all the proceeds to ShelterBox.
So far, they’ve raised about $57.
During her time in Dominica, an island in the Lesser Antilles archipelago, Huntley was part of a team of student researchers who excavated sea turtle nests, counted eggs, looked for hatchlings and collected data on turtle populations.
She learned a lot about sea turtle conservation, she said, and also about the friendly, welcoming nature of people who live in the Caribbean.
At one point during her stay, she and some classmates “got into a little bit of trouble” for not chatting with security guards on their way to the beach.
Dominica weathered Hurricane Irma fairly well, Huntley said. But several neighboring islands did not. Anguilla, Antigua, Barbuda, St. Martin, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and others sustained catastrophic damage, and she wanted to help.
If her bake sale raises $500, that would finance half of one ShelterBox, which includes a family-sized tent, solar lights, blankets, water-filtration equipment and other supplies, she said. She and her friends plan to bake more treats over the weekend and continue the sale next week.
“If I can help even just a little bit and give them a little bit of hope, that makes me feel really good,” she said.
To support Laurel Huntley’s efforts to secure a ShelterBox for victims of Hurricane Irma, send contributions to Goddard Academy, 19701 W. 23rd Street South, Goddard KS, 67052. Or, contact principal Sean Hollas, 316-794-4142.
For more information about ShelterBox, go to www.shelterboxusa.org.