![Adding a tray of canned corn to the pile, junior Michael Collop assists in transporting donations for the Holiday Food Drive. The event, hosted schoolwide from Dec. 10-17, raised over 5,000 food items to deliver to the Parkway Food Pantry, helping several families in need. [The drive] is a great thing for us to do because you're giving to those who are less fortunate, and it helps provide for people who can't provide for themselves. [The] competition is always fun, too. It was fun to be in [social studies teacher Jess] Chazen’s class, because he always gets worked up over [the competition]. He made it exciting, and was always convincing us to turn in cans for the drive,” Collop said.](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/feature-photo-unsung-2.png)
![NEW CHALLENGE, NEW TEAM MEMBERS: Every season, VEX creates a new game that robotics team members are faced with and have to build a robot to compete in. This year’s game forces students to create a robot that is able to stack rings onto mobile goals in order to score points. The change in games each season is something that robotics teacher Audrea Moyers appreciates.
“One of the things that I like about VEX is that they have a new problem to solve every year,” she said. ¨Even though the equipment’s the same, they have to analyze the game, and they have to come up with solutions that are unique that year. They are using their knowledge from prior years, but they have to kind of redesign a problem.”
As returning teams were faced a new game, some new teams and members had to adapt to a uncommon playing field and game.
“Three of our four teams were competing for the first time this year, and they had very different experiences match to match, so I think they learned a lot,¨ she said. ¨It’s hard just watching a video online to know how it’s actually going to be in person, so they all learned a lot about what gameplay is like, how to work with an alliance partner [and] how to adapt during the day to changes.”](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/IMG_9283-1-1200x800.jpg)
*Content Warning: This article includes mentions of graphic violence and domestic abuse.
Community Overcoming Relationship Abuse (CORA), a non-profit organization based in San Mateo dedicated to helping individuals affected by domestic violence, held a candlelit vigil in remembrance of Karina Castro on Sept. 30.
Castro was allegedly beheaded last month by suspect
“We honor those that pass. There are many, but today we honor Karina,” said Socorro Salazar, a CORA staff member.
According to CORA statistics, Castro’s story of domestic abuse is not improbable. Locally, intimate partner abuse affects one in four women and one in seven men in San Mateo County, along with more than 11,000 calls made to CORA victims per year.
“One of the first things for me, when we hear there’s a death, is that I want to know that person’s name,” said CORA’s Chief Executive Officer Karen Ferguson. “I want to know [their name] so that we can … keep that person right front of us, so that [the community] heals, instead of saying, ‘Alright, what’s the next thing?’”
Ferguson noted that when a domestic violence-related death occurs, CORA’s first actions involve reaching out and connecting with the community as they grieve and learn to heal. She also said that a major priority is taking care of their staff and supporting them through tragic times like these.
“I often think of the ones that came into my safe house, but also how many of them didn’t make it in,” said Yajaira Morales, a CORA staff member. “[It’s hard] realizing that she was one of them that didn’t make it.”
During the vigil, several attendees wiped tears from their faces as a community member shared a poem they wrote about victims of abuse. One attendee, Captain Matt Lethin of the San Mateo County Police Department, expressed his gratitude for CORA’s role in helping the community come together and highlighted the importance of their work.
“We take [domestic violence] extremely seriously… It is a crime that’s often hidden, so victims suffer in silence,” Lethin said.
He not only talked about the police department supporting victims but also about reaching out to the perpetrators.
“We’re going to hold [the perpetrators] accountable and bring them to justice, but they’re a part of the community, and we really want to change that approach and connect with them however we can so they can make different choices in the future,” Lethin said.
In a country where more than five million children witness domestic abuse each year, statistics from the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence show that about 23% of women and 13% of men endure a physical attack by an intimate partner at some point during their lives. CORA experts have noticed this trend and found that experiences of abuse at a young age are a leading cause of domestic violence, rather than anger, stress, or substance abuse.
Ultimately, the community recognized CORA’s effort to bring awareness to the issue of domestic abuse and violence.
Attendees of the vigil said they were “touched by Karina’s story” and they agree that “it’s important to show support and spread awareness about domestic violence.”
Part of CORA’s mission is educating the community on how to help someone experiencing domestic abuse. According to CORA, respecting someone’s “right to privacy and right to refuse help,” along with supporting them and motivating them to get help on their own, are important parts of supporting a victim of domestic violence.
For youth affected by domestic violence, Morales described several resources available for adolescents, including the Youth Engagement and Advocacy program. YEA advocates provide students with confidential counseling about abusive relationships.
CORA, along with many other domestic violence organizations, is helping victims, helping their families, and helping the community mend from trauma caused by abuse.
Ferguson said, “Can a community heal versus just move on? We don’t want people to move on. We want people to heal.”
Resources:
CORA 24-hour Hotline – 800-300-1080
National Domestic Violence Hotline – 800-799-7233
This story was originally published on Scot Scoop News on October 5, 2022.