Something good happened for hundreds of students in Fort Worth, all thanks to one educator’s drive to save the holiday season. It was all thanks to educator Kyle Murphy. The testing coordinator and data analyst for the district saw a need and hoped the community would fill it. For more than 50 years, George C. Clarke Elementary School has had a tradition of giving gifts to its hundreds of students every year around Christmas. Many of those students otherwise would go without. “Many of our kids at our school are at an economic disadvantage, and for some of these kids, it’s the only gift they are going to get this year,” Murphy said. “Several weeks ago, we had a meeting and realized that because our PTO [Parent Teacher Organization] has had such low participation this year, there wouldn’t be enough money for us to do it.” Murphy said she couldn’t let that be the end of it. She took matters into her own hands in the form of a TikTok ask that has since gone viral with more than 1.6 million views. “I really didn’t know how TikTok worked, and I thought I would get on and have enough viewers that TikTok would stop up, but within 48 hours… we had enough gifts for everyone,” Murphy said. From high school students who said they just had a few dollars to give to older adults who said they felt compelled to help, she saw a little something for everyone in the comments. “These are people who have no ties to my students. I have had donations of a dollar from high school students, saying I just want to help.” While many donated out of the kindness of their hearts, Murphy has seen firsthand the need. “I asked a student the other day what he wanted for Christmas, and he said Gatorade and a basketball. I mean, most kids are asking for huge things, and this kid wants Gatorade and a basketball. I mean, I don’t have any words for that. I’ve just seen something like this happen too many times, and people who act like the problem isn’t there. I thought if I don’t do this, then who will?” Murphy’s grassroots efforts yielded countless Amazon boxes and donations through her peer-to-peer payment apps, and it was more than they needed for her school. She said the extras will go to a nearby elementary school that could use a little help as well. A special guest will go classroom to classroom the last week of class before Christmas to give each child their presents. As far as her next random act of kindness? She is focused on teachers at her school, hoping that through another effort, she can provide them with something nice this holiday season to thank them for all of their hard work. This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser. ...read more read less