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Flooding victims receive back to school shopping spree

Children received $125 each to shop at Target
Posted at 10:16 PM, Aug 24, 2019
and last updated 2019-08-24 23:16:49-04

BELLEVUE, Neb. — The flooding that Nebraska experienced this past spring has devastated local families.

"We were told to vacate one day and we lost every single thing that we owned. Everything," Bellevue resident and flooding victim Shan-tel Nigh said.

With the school year kicking off, some families, like Shan-tel and her son Keyan, are still displaced.

"Right now me and my son and I are staying with my grandparents," Nigh said.

Getting school supplies, clothes and other necessities can be tough. So the Bellevue Papillion Rotary Club decided to help.

"Each child coming through the door here today gets $125 dollars tax free to spend on school supplies," foundation chair of club, Colm Breathnach said.

Families were able to walk around a local Target and get clothes, school supplies, things many may take for granted. But to the flood victims, it meant the world.

"It might seem so simple to some people but it's actually a lot more than...It's so hard to start over from scratch," Nigh said.

Starting over from scratch is exactly what Shan-tel and her son are doing.

"My home it was completely underwater and I think it was our front porch was in our backyard," Nigh said.

"I cried for about four days," her son Keyan added.

This shopping spree means a lot to these victims. Keyan even styled his hair in a professional, slicked-back look for the special day.

"Because it was a special occasion," he said.

"It tells them that the Bellevue Papillion communities have not abandoned them, we still remember the situation and that we're here to help," Breathnach said.