On Friday, a seven-member team from St. Thomas High School at Eruvallipra will set out on a mission to landslides-affected Meppadi in Wayanad.
Like many teams that have visited the area since the disaster on July 30, they too will carry relief materials for the landslides-affected. But this group brings something far more personal—a collection of 90 handwritten notebooks for students of Classes 8, 9, and 10.
These notebooks, comprising notes of all subjects, are the result of a week-long effort by the students. They are intended for the high school students from the villages hit by the landslides.
Around 60 students with neat handwriting devoted their time in transcribing the notes, while others worked to compile and spiral-bind them into books.
“We will be distributing these notebooks to the affected students, identified through the teachers of GVHSS Vallarmala, who are currently stationed at Meppadi Government High School,” said Shaji Mathew, headmaster of St. Thomas School. The inspiration for this act came after Mr. Mathew saw the footage of a school bag floating in the muddy floodwaters of Chooralmala.
“When I shared with my students the struggles of their peers in Wayanad, especially the disruption in their education, they were the ones who came up with the idea of creating these notebooks,” he explained.
After that discussion, each class at St. Thomas was assigned the task of creating notes for their counterparts, who have been redeployed to two other government schools in Wayanad. Students formed groups to tackle different subjects, spending long hours meticulously copying down material during breaks and after school. Their teachers stood by their side, offering guidance, encouragement, and corrections when needed.
Deep meaning
For Ashly Mary Shibu, a class 8 student, this initiative carries deep meaning. “We wanted to make sure that their learning isn’t affected,” she said. “The stories of our fellow students who lost their loved ones and belongings in the landslides deeply moved us. Alongside all the compassion and aid being sent their way, we wanted to contribute in our own way,” she said.
