All of the Ross Medical Education Center and Ross College campuses are proud to support those in need in their communities. At least once a month, they make it their mission to get out there and make a real difference to their neighbors. In the spirit of having a little friendly competition between the campuses while still working to support a great cause, the Ross Rally for a Cause event was born! The original intention was to compete between campuses to see how much money could be raised by staff, faculty, and students making contributions. The campus that raised the most money was then going to get to donate it all to the charity of their choosing.
However, all of that changed just before the big day – Wednesday, April 5th. Late during the night between Thursday, March 30th and Friday, March 31st, the Kleberg County Volunteer Fire Department was called to a local house fire. Although any house fire is devastating, this one took the lives of three out of the five member family asleep inside. Johnathan Lawson and two of the couple’s children, Skylar and Rosie, tragically lost their lives in the blaze. Jennifer Gonzalez Lawson and the couple’s two-year-old son were the two survivors of the fire.
This heart-wrenching story immediately grabbed the attention of the Ross community, but even more so because there was already a deep connection. Jennifer is a Ross graduate and a member of the Ross family. Shortly after graduating from the Medical Assistant program at Ross in Morgantown, West Virginia in September of 2014, Jennifer and her family moved to a small Texas town for her husband’s job. However, connections at Ross run deep, and Jennifer had stayed in contact with her campus and classmates. So, when the terrible news came to the Ross community about the tragedy that had happened to her family, no one had a second thought about opening their hearts and their wallets to support her.
In fact, the Rally for a Cause event was originally supposed to collect just small donations and end on April 5th with a goal of $4,000. However, as soon as the staff, faculty, and students of all of the Ross campuses heard about Jennifer and her family, the generosity skyrocketed. There were individuals donating amounts in excess of $100 instead of the suggested $1-$5 donation, some up to around $300. And even after the event ended, the donations continued to pour in. By the end, Ross was able to donate more than $6,000 to this family to help to alleviate some of the burden of funeral expenses and remind one of their own that the Ross community will always be behind her.
If you are interested in supporting Jennifer and her youngest son as they recover, both physically and emotionally, please visit their GoFundMe page.