From Classroom to Community: ATPE Local Units and Regions Support Their Neighbors
From El Paso to San Antonio, Plano, and Denton, ATPE local units and regions are showing up and doing their part to benefit their communities through a variety of service projects.
ATPE membership comes with a variety of benefits, including valuable opportunities to connect with fellow educators. These connections are fostered through local units and regions, which serve as platforms for members to engage and support their communities—something these groups have consistently achieved.
Region 19 ATPE
Every December, Region 19 ATPE proudly participates in the Toys for Tots program, which has been spreading holiday cheer by delivering gifts to children during Christmas since 1947. In addition to this annual tradition, Region 19 ATPE actively supports several charitable initiatives throughout the year. These include partnerships with El Pasoans Fighting Hunger—El Paso’s only food bank and a member of Feeding America, which served over 180,000 food-insecure individuals and distributed 110 million pounds of food in 2024 alone.
Region 19 ATPE has also contributed to sock and beanie drives benefiting the Salvation Army and organized toy and food drives for the Child Crisis Center of El Paso (CCCEP), a nonprofit shelter that operates without federal funding. The center provides a secure sanctuary where children can regain their sense of normalcy, free from concerns of harm, hunger, homelessness, or isolation.
Additionally, Region 19 ATPE supports Laws N Paws Animal Rescue, an organization founded by El Paso Police Department detective Vanessa Acosta. Since its inception in 2017, the organization has rescued more than 550 animals, offering care and second chances to countless pets in need.
Region 20 ATPE
At the start of the spring season, Region 20 ATPE announced an opportunity for its members to volunteer at the San Antonio Food Bank, and Region 20 membership responded. “We were part of a group that bagged over 35,000 pounds of food,” Region 20 ATPE President John Milner says. “(We) filled 1,700 of those purple bags with onions, potatoes, and carrots. Some members bagged vegetables while others helped with loading pallets and moving pallets to be weighed before food bank staff used forklifts to put pallets in their large cooler to await being trucked out all over San Antonio area.”
In addition to its spring community service, Region 20 ATPE also hosted a toy drive in December.
Plano ATPE
Featured in the 2024-25 edition of the ATPE Lookbook, Plano ATPE actively participates in a variety of local service projects. These efforts include shoe collection drives and serving meals at churches and shelters. “When we lead by example, they’re able to understand the passion behind what we do and why we do it,” Region 10 ATPE President Clarice Cross says. Other recent initiatives include a Trek or Treat event that benefited the Plano Animal Shelter and serving food at Journey of Hope, a support center for children and families coping with grief.
Northside (20) ATPE
Northside (20) ATPE took part in the Elf Louise Christmas Project, a tradition that began in 1969 when Trinity University student Louise Locker set out to provide Christmas presents to children from less fortunate families who might otherwise go without. In this photo, local unit members Rose Burton and Rudy Romero load up donated toys for distribution.
Denton ATPE
Each year in late March, Americans across the country participate in the event known as The Great American Cleanup, and Denton ATPE proudly joined the effort in 2024. That year, 1,500 registered volunteers collected 926 bags of trash and 120 bags of recycling, removing a total of 5 tons of waste from the community.
Has your local unit or region helped with a community service project? Share it in the ATPE Online Community!
Jack Densmore
Marketing and Communications Specialist
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