Just wanting to give back to the school system that had been so good to him, Andy Olivas decided to donate $800 to Travis Elementary School this past week.
Olivas, graduated from high school in 2019 and works at Pathfinder in Odessa.
He went to Pease Elementary and Ector and Crockett for middle school. Olivas went to Odessa High School for a year and finished his schooling online.
Olivas said he had been meaning to make a donation for a while. In passing, his manager said his wife worked at Travis.
“I thought about it for a while and I figured it would be a good idea,” Olivas said.
He added that it felt good to give back and he said Principal Amy Russell took him on a tour of the campus.
“It brought me back to when I was a kid and I was going through school myself,” Olivas said. “It was just nice to know I was helping out. Even if it was in a small way, it was still making a bit of a difference. It was something I would like to do again …”
Olivas added that every little bit helps and it can make a difference in the lives of students and teachers.
He said he knows a lot of teachers use their own money for supplies and things they need to teach the students the way they want to.
“As far as it goes, even the tiniest donation or anything you can do for the schools, it can go a long way and hopefully it inspires some people to do (it) as well,” Olivas said.
For Russell’s part, she said one of her teachers mentioned that someone at her husband’s work wanted to make a donation. She thought it would be a business, but it turned out to be an individual.
“He had it in his heart to donate back to the school system. The school was good to him and helped him get his job. I thought that was wonderful … I was sucking back the tears,” Russell said.
He told her to use the money for the teachers and students. Russell said he was at Ector at the same time she was and he thought he remembered her.
“It was a neat connection … This is such an amazing, positive story,” Russell said.
