Elementary track meet a community service project for student

May 27—Each month, Hays STEAM Academy has community service projects.

This year, fifth grader Connor Gibson wanted his to look a little different so with a lot of support from his campus and Ector County ISD, Gibson put on what was possibly the district's first elementary track meet at Ratliff Stadium.

Gibson, 11, said every year all students at the school are challenged to make a difference in the community whether it's helping at the West Texas Food Bank or the Humane Society or writing to patients in the hospital.

The track meet, which was just for fifth grade, was held May 15.

"This year I chose to make a difference in a different way than other kids have so I created a track meet because I like sports, and a lot of my other friends like sports," Gibson said.

Principal Paula Dannheim said five schools and roughly 500 students participated in the meet.

They started with 14 teams and then teams started dropping out until they got down to five. Gibson said he plans to slowly get younger grades involved in the meet.

They were happy with how it went and they learned what worked and what they have to tweak, Dannheim said.

Gibson plans to come back and help next year.

He said his teachers, coaches, Dannheim, Odessa and Permian High School coaches and players, Director of Athletics Crystal "Diva" Day, Executive Director of Athletics Tracey Borchardt, Director of Athletics Cecilia Kellar, the Transportation Department, and people at Ratliff Stadium made the meet happen.

ECISD Board of Trustees President Tammy Hawkins was on hand to support Gibson.

Dannheim said Gibson started planning the event last year and it just came to fruition this year.

They charged $2 at the gate and Gibson raised $400 from just admissions and the Hays STEAM PTA donated $1,100 enabling him to give $1,500 to West Texas Gifts of Hope.

West Texas Gifts of Hope is a nonprofit organization that provides hope and assistance to cancer patients in the Permian Basin, their website said.

Hope House provides lodging and other free services for cancer patients in treatment, it said.

Gibson, who will attend Nimitz Middle School next year, said it made him feel good to give back in this way.

"I looked at different organizations for cancer and stuff like that ... When I saw West Texas Gifts of Hope ... and what they do for their patients and their families, it's really cool," he added.

They are trying to make sure the meet will continue.

Gibson runs the 4 by 100 and 100 meters.

Running, he said, is fun and meeting new people is his favorite part.

"Not only is it fun, you get to compete and meet new people and other stuff," Gibson said. "That's what makes it fun to me."

He added that he's received a lot of feedback from the track meet.

"People are thankful that I did this for my classmates and other people. People are giving me advice to pursue my dreams ... I'm doing something good for my community and things in that category," Gibson said.

Dannheim said the high school students had as much fun as the elementary kids.

"They loved hanging out," she added.

Dannheim said Day and Borchardt helped with the stadium so they didn't have to pay anything for the venue.

"Those ladies, they were very instrumental in helping us get this organized and ready. They had, I think it was every other week, they had meetings with Connor where they either came here or we had Zoom meetings," Dannheim said.

"He got to decide which games, which events, and then he had to come up with rule sheets. He had to come up with workers. He had to do a lot of stuff. He had to send out parent letters, permission forms. He learned a lot. There's a lot to putting an event on like this," she added.

"We can't do it by ourselves, can we?" she added.

They had the 4 by 100, 50 meter hurdles, 100 meter hurdles, football and a basketball shootout and soccer games.

The hurdles were short so kids could jump over them more easily.

Dannheim said she thinks Gibson is a good example for other students.

"He's an excellent role model," Dannheim said.

Hays has a community service project once a month and Gibson just decided to make his look a little different and went above and beyond what was asked of him, Dannheim said.