Bear Drive
The Bear Drive has become an annual Steinbrenner tradition. Students are encouraged to bring in bears, which will be collected by the Tampa Rough Riders. The bears will be given to local hospitals, police departments, and fire departments, who then give them to children in unfortunate situations.
Steinbrenner is the largest single donor the Rough Riders have. Teacher Beverley Jarrett has been involved every year and hopes to collect at least 3,000 bears this year.
“Last year we collected 3,014 bears. That’s never enough for me. I always want more. I have been known to collect 4,000 bears in one year, not here at Steinbrenner yet, but we are building,” said Jarrett.
Jarrett is very passionate about the bear drive. She had a son, Scott, who died at six years old. While he was in the hospital, he received a bag with crayons and a coloring book from a stranger. Jarrett was so inspired by this random act of kindness that she collected crayons and coloring books while she lived in Virginia, but when she moved here she heard about the Tampa Rough Riders and decided to become a contributor to them.
“I started the contest to get them [the other schools] to bring in bears. So if they bring in 500 bears that’s 500 smiles that we wouldn’t have had before,” said Jarrett.
Orange Out
Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CPRS) is a serious form of chronic pain that affects one’s limb or limbs. Students are spreading awareness about the syndrome for a fellow Steinbrenner student, Natalia Reyes. Reyes, a fifteen year old freshmen, suffers from CPRS, Gastroparesis (a condition that affects the stomach), Dysautonomia (a condition that affects the nervous system), and a handful of others.
November is officially Color the World Orange Month in respect for those suffering from CRPS. On November 13th, junior Ashley Noriega organized an “Orange Out” to spread awareness of the syndrome, and in honor of Reyes, students were encouraged to wear orange clothes to school that day. The Orange Out was a complete surprise to Reyes.
“People are talking about it to their friends to make sure they know what it is to spread [awareness] around,” said Noriega, “she’s the happiest girl in the world. She’s always smiling. It’s amazing to see how it doesn’t affect her personality.”
“I’ve learned so much from her. It’s honestly amazing. She teaches me that every day you should be waking up thankful that you’re actually alive with no health problems. Just because something’s wrong with you doesn’t mean you have to be pushed back because of it. You can always go even farther,” said Noriega.
Blood Drive
It is that time of year again. The Big Red Buses arrived at Steinbrenner for the annual blood drive, hosted by One Blood.
Students who are 16 and older with no health problems were able to participate in the December 1st blood drive.
“I have type O positive blood, so I donate to everybody,” said junior Cora Mannino. “It [peer involvement] helps show that anybody can give blood. Also, since we are younger we have healthier blood than someone who is older.”
One Blood is looking for automated products (this includes plasma, red blood cells and white blood cells) in the donated blood. These products will be delivered to people who have cancer or people with blood disorders in need of automated products. One of the most common types of blood disorders is Anemia, which affects 3 million Americans according to the American Society of Hematology. Some students gave blood because others who are close to them have been affected by these disorders and diseases.
“I have always given blood in the past, my grandma was in the hospital and needed a blood transfusion. Ever since, I have always given blood,” said senior Daniela Farreoo.
