I wanted to update you on the day the new Bishop Maginn High School Security Wish List is having, more than half of the items requested are gone, there are three left:

These items remain: Requests for 13 Silver Mylar Emergency Blankets in case the children have to go out into the cold, they are $10.95; 13 rechargeable Walkie Talkies so the teachers can communicate with one another and the outside world, they are $35.99 each; and 12 E-Fak red backpacks to hold first aid kits, snacks and lists of students and emergency agencies, the bright red backpacks are $21.98 each.

Earlier in the day, the Army of Good purchased first aid kits for the backpacks.

This is a sad, even shocking list to compile in America, but it is both urgent and necessary. Schools in general and refugees, in particular, have become targets all over the country.  We are seeking to keep them as safe as is possible, they and their families have been targeted enough.

I am so sorry to be writing about this, but it is important. So far in 2019, there have been 22 shootings at U.S. schools in which someone was hurt or killed. They have occurred across the country from Georgia to California, at elementary, middle and high schools and on college and university campuses.

I never imagined seeing a list like this in America, schools need so many things – money for teachers, supplies – and it is such a great shame that any money has to go for this. But it is important, even urgent.

If we can’t protect our children, what, then can we do? Refugees by nature are vulnerable and needy. Through this work, they are seeing the truth about the American soul.

Local police have visited the school and evaluated the security at Bishop Maginn. These are their suggestions. These items will make the school safer and more secure. For obvious reasons, I can’t offer any more details than that.

Thanks for considering this effort to make Bishop Maginn and its students safer. You can see the Security Wish List here. And thank you.

Photo above, Issachar, senior, Bishop Maginn High School.