Published: April 20, 2008 12:34 am      

San Jacinto School renovated

Former students of the San Jacinto School, with supporters and well wishers from the West Sandy community, spent a warm, sunny day remembering times past and preserving those memories for future generations at the building’s dedication ceremony on Saturday.

“We saw the school go from a falling down, dilapidated building, to what you see today,” said West Sandy Community Association president Jim Woods.

The association was formed years ago but it never got off the ground, said former San Jacinto School student Maxine Sandel. She said people passing by the site heard someone inside the old schoolhouse ripping up the floors and stopped the person from doing any more harm.

“The people (WSCA) became indignant that someone was going to take it away board by board and revamped the association,” said Sandel.

An election of officers and a grassroots campaign was started to raise the funds to restore the building, located at Richards Road (FM 1791) and FM 3179.

“We did every kind of fundraiser you could think of; everybody dug deep, gave money, and here we are,” said Sandel. The building’s renovation began in early 2005.

Walking in the school, old photographs, report cards, homework assignments and school play costumes are displayed throughout. Recent photographs of how run-down the building was and what it looks like now are in a photo album in one of the classrooms.

Dorothy Turner taught first, second, third and fourth grade in the building. She received hugs from former students in the room where she taught in the 1940s and 1950s.

“Lots of memories in this room,” said Turner. She was also given the honor of ringing the old school bell once again.

Elbert Walker, a student of the San Jacinto School, remembered there was no electricity, running water or indoor bathrooms. He and his wife visited a few months ago and noticed there wasn’t a flagpole out in front of the school and put the wheels in motion to donate one.

“The flagpole was important because when the erasers got dusty, we came out and beat them on the pole. Looking back, I think I had a pretty good education and lots of memories,” said Walker.

The Rev. Charlie Powell Jr. remembered getting to school behind his uncle on horseback and reminisced about a recess time when he and some older students were doing something they weren’t supposed to be doing.

He said there were some pine trees at the edge of the schoolyard that were young saplings with some larger trees shadowing them.

“At recess time, all the big guys would go across the fence. They weren’t supposed to do that, but they would climb that tree, get a hold of the sapling, and they would ride it to the ground. It would come back up, the next one would get on it and they would ride it to the ground,” he said.

Powell said when his turn came, he was leaning too far and when the tree came back, it hit him in the head, and knocked him out of the tree. The boys became worried and told him not to tell them how he got hurt.

“Tell them you fell on a stump,” said Powell. He did tell his teacher he fell on a stump and got to go home early.

Walker County judge Danny Pierce lives in the area and enjoys being a part of the West Sandy Community.

“There was a lot of tireless effort put forth in this old school house,” said Pierce.

Pierce also mentioned the involvement of Texas Department of Criminal Justice inmates from the Wynne Unit in helping with the restoration as well as individuals from Sam Houston State University and AT&T with providing tables and chairs.

“It’s a great day to be out here and this was a community effort,” said Walker County Clerk James Patton. “This was what our nation was built on, pulling together, working together, creating and recreating and restoring things in our respective communities.”

He said he remembered passing by the building for years and thought how sad it was and when he was called and told that someone was stealing lumber out of it, he couldn’t sleep that night.

“This is truly a great day for this community, a tribute to all the children and their wonderful teachers that went to this school, learned and have wonderful memories,” said Patton.

Evelyn and Joe McDaniel were instrumental in the restoration project. Patton said it wouldn’t have happened without their, and all the people in the community’s tenacity to see it through.

Maggie Farris Parker’s mother, Erma Farris, was a teacher and principal of the San Jacinto School. The 99-page thesis Farris wrote is on display in the classroom.

“She had a dream and her thesis is about that dream. Her dream was to lift the spirits of the community, of people who were caught in the throes of the post-World War II economic transition,” said Parker of her mother.

She spoke of the area’s transition from a farming era to the information era and the resulting migration of young people to the city to find work. In West Sandy, she said this migration had left the middle-aged and older folks and their children trapped out there in the country, 15 miles from nowhere, with nothing to challenge, to entertain, or money to pursue activities.

“Mother’s assessment was those stranded in this area at that time were feeling trapped in circumstances beyond their control, covered over by a sense of hopelessness and living in disconnect with the reality of daily life. She was determined to do something about it,” said Parker.

Farris researched and read articles about how people in similar communities overcame the obstacles they were faced with and found activities starting in the schools were the key.

She started a Mother’s Club where the mothers of students cooked the meals and older female students were allowed to help. The Mother’s Club found ways to raise money by piecing together quilts and auctioning them off.

“The funds were used to pay for softball and volleyball equipment and to cover transportation charges for the older students to travel to other small schools for competitive academic and sports activities,” said Parker.

Through Parker’s dream for the area where she lived and taught, field trips to San Antonio and the introduction of music programs were implemented and the lives of her students and the residents of the West Sandy community were enriched.

For more information about reserving the school, contact Mary Webster at (936) 295-7475.