A high school’s legacy of philanthropic students

1981 Corona del Mar grad and school club join forces to collect hygiene supplies for hurricane victims.As a freshman at Corona del Mar High School in 1978, Jim Palmer underwent a life-changing experience when he discovered -- in the posh center of Orange County -- a homeless family living down the street from him.

The realization led Palmer to seek a career in philanthropy. The 1981 graduate is the president of the Orange County Rescue Mission and is preparing to open a large shelter in Tustin for Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita victims.

A quarter century later, Palmer hasn’t forgotten his alma mater -- and it came knocking on his door again Friday. For three weeks, the Anthro Club at Corona del Mar High School has led a drive to gather hygiene kits for homeless families. The packages are marked for delivery to Palmer’s shelter, the Village of Hope, which is set to open next year.

“It’s great the high school is behind it because ever since I was a freshman there I felt a calling to help people,” Palmer said.

Starting in the last week of November, the Anthro Club -- a student group of more than 100 members that focuses on humanitarian projects -- placed fliers around the school inviting first-period classes to donate hygiene items. By Friday, club advisor Denise Weiland’s office was piled high with shampoo bottles, bar soap, toothbrushes, and toilet paper rolls.

“Part of the reason for this drive was to show that there are a lot of people in the world who lack basic necessities -- the soap that we take for granted in the shower,” said junior Zan Margolis, 16, the co-founder of the Anthro Club.

Although the Village of Hope, housed in a former Marine barracks, is not expected to open in full until summer, Palmer said the Rescue Mission hoped to open at least some of the residential suites in March. To some on the West Coast, the hurricanes may seem like distant problems, but according to Palmer, there are 1,051 Katrina evacuees in Orange County alone.

In October, members of the Anthro club held a Halloween party at the HealthBridge Children’s Rehabilitation Hospital in Orange; the following month, the students took a weekend trip to a Tijuana orphanage.

For the hygiene drive, Weiland and her students held a contest, with the classes that gathered the most items winning Krispy Kreme parties. Mary Christensen, who teaches American history, won in the 11th- and 12th-grade bracket by accumulating 31 bags.

Despite her class’s turnout, Christensen made a last-minute run to Ralphs grocery store on Friday -- after it dawned on her that she and her students had mostly donated one item.

“I felt bad after a while,” Christensen said. “I thought, ‘It’s going to be disappointing if there’s only toilet paper.’”20051217irmeo3ncDON LEACH / DAILY PILOT(LA)Members of the Corona del Mar High School Anthro Club hold bags of donated items ready for delivery to families displaced by hurricanes Katrina and Rita.