One small school on Charlotte’s east side feeds its village in the midst of COVID-19

MC Hildreth wanted so badly to wrap her arms around her students and their families as they filed in and out of the quiet cafeteria of The Nest Academy off Eastway Drive.

But there was a pandemic brewing, which is why they were there on Wednesday afternoon — to pick up provisions Hildreth and her staff had rounded up for what could be a long isolation for members of the tiny school that serves 24 low-income students, mostly Latino immigrants and refugees.

The private school, founded in 2009, is free for students.

On one side of the cafeteria sat boxes loaded with veggies and flatbread and shredded cheese, all donated by Cici’s Pizza. Nearby, six cafeteria tables were loaded with cereal and canned goods, bread, fresh fruit, soap and hygiene products.

The relief effort was the result of a sinking feeling that hit Hildreth hard on Sunday while she stood in line buying groceries and supplies for herself and her own three children: If she was having trouble finding the essentials, she had to find a way to help her school’s families get through the crisis.

“Their needs are great every day on a normal basis,” Hildreth said.

On Monday, she sent an email blast to 600 school supporters, and within minutes, donations were rolling in.

Hildreth took the $1,000 that was donated and spent Monday and Tuesday filling carts with groceries and supplies and notifying families that help was coming.

“We wanted to ensure them that we had their kids, that we were going to continue to teach their kids every single day and that we would continue to feed them,” she said. For many, “this is triggering something that reminds them of the fight they’ve been in before, the fight for their lives, to flee their country.”

One mom named Luz, who has two kids at The Nest, smiled widely as she picked out her groceries. She has a compromised immune system because she suffers from Lupus, so being able to get food from a sparsely populated cafeteria instead of a grocery store was a big help.

“This is incredible,” she said.

Hildreth helped families carry boxes out on Wednesday afternoon, and bid students farewell.

But while they wouldn’t see each other in person for awhile, they’d be seeing each other daily via Chromebook. Last week, school staff sent students home with Chromebooks in case schools were closed.

“This is where the strength of the community really is able to be shown,” Hildreth said, “by linking arms with one another.”

This story was originally published March 19, 2020 at 4:14 PM.