WESLACO — The sight of a little boy jumping for joy because of a free meal is enough to tug on most anyone’s heart strings; but for Danielle LeeAnn Silva, herself a child at the age of 13, it was a profound moment she won’t soon forget.
“Once he walked in, he started jumping up and down because he saw all the food,” the Central Middle School eighth grader said about another youngster’s reaction to a free Thanksgiving dinner, which she helped organize at Ciro’s Restaurant in Weslaco on Monday. “So I sat him down and he said, ‘thank you,’ but he was still so excited that his mom had to calm him down,” she added. “That makes me feel like I actually did something good … like helping this family get a feast. It put joy in my heart to see them smiling and excited.”
The event was for underprivileged Weslaco High and Central Middle School students and their families. Among those who assisted by serving attendees were members of Central’s cheerleading squad, 2016 Miss Texas Onion Fest Lorraine Garcia and 2016 Miss Weslaco Daniella Hernandez.
As the 2016 Miss Onion Blossom and student council president at her campus, Danielle is already no stranger to representing her community and participating in local events. The aforementioned feast, however, stands out as more than a hallmark moment expected from someone in such positions, but as an unlikely feat due to the circumstances.
Consider, her mother Linda Silva asks, how it all came together in just three days. According to the proud mom, it wasn’t until the Friday before the event that Danielle came up with the idea and reached out to Ciro’s owners Danny and Sonia Castañeda, who she said contributed the sides for the meals as well as five of the nine turkeys needed.
“It wasn’t easy,” Linda said with a laugh before further crediting the Castañedas, as well as the support of WHS and CMS staff. “We’re still trying to recuperate from it, but it was for a good cause. I asked her (Danielle) what the important lesson was that she took from all of this, and she said just giving back.”
Linda also credited Weslaco High Principal Yvette Morales, campus social worker Elva Rey and several Central Middle School staff members for their facilitation. For instance, they assisted in identifying families in need and spreading the word about the event.
As a result, more than 150 people were in attendance for the dinner, which was held between 6 and 8 p.m.
“She was so emotional throughout the day,” Linda said of her daughter’s reaction. “And the principals and counselors … they were just elated. It was a combination of all of our efforts.”
Such was the dinner’s success that Danielle is already planning a similar event for Christmas. The idea is to get each child who attends sponsored for a free Christmas meal and gift. What’s more, Linda said they hope to include other campuses from the district, such as Beatriz G. Garza Middle School.
“Maybe we’ll change it up to make the menu easier for us, but we do plan on targeting more families,” Linda further noted. “I was surprised with the amount of people that showed up on Monday night because I was afraid not a lot of people would come. But we ended up having a full house, and even the mayor showed up.”
Indeed, Weslaco Mayor David Suarez was on-hand for the festivities and expressed enthusiasm over Danielle’s efforts.
“It was a pretty impressive event with more than 100 students and families there, and we even helped serve them turkey and ate with them,” he said of the opportunity to break bread with local families in need. “It was a community service that showed how much our young citizens are involved; that’s really awesome and something to be thankful for. And so I commend Danielle for taking the lead and putting this project together in such a short time.”
For more information about future efforts to host similar dinners, call Linda or Danielle at (956) 272-8759.
