CHARLESTON, W.Va. — There are seven high schools in Kanawha County, but hundreds who attended a fundraiser at University of Charleston Tuesday night for Herbert Hoover High School were all Huskies.
Actress and Charleston native Jennifer Garner held the event with state Sen. Corey Palumbo (D-Kanawha) raising over $120,000 for the school which was ravaged in the June 23 flood.
“Having gone through several tragedies and disasters like this, the most important thing is what West Virginians are doing, and that’s helping each other,” said Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin. “Even though the flood started nearly a month ago, people are still recovering and there’s still lots of volunteers out there. Neighbor helping neighbor and that’s very important.”
Palumbo was with Garner last Saturday to see the damage at Herbert Hoover firsthand, which he said was more jarring for Garner than reading or seeing a news report.
“To actually put your eyes on it is a little bit different than reading about it or hearing about it for her,” he said. “I think it’s going to help her tell our story as she goes back to Los Angeles and throughout the country.”
Kanawha Commission President Kent Carper said he remembered Garner in Charleston, and she hasn’t let fame change her.
“She is as kind and unassuming now as she was when she walked the halls of George Washington High School,” said Carper. “You look at this room, you see the folks that are here; folks that just want to come and help. I’m proud of my town. I’m proud of my county.”
All of the money donated at Tuesday night’s event will go toward Hoover to replace supplies lost in the school during the flood. Hoover students will be at least starting their school year with half days at Elkview Middle School, before switching over to portables.
Last week the school was listed by FEMA as having over 70 percent damage. If and when it will reopen remains unclear.
“This is really about helping support the kids at Hoover have the most normal educational process they can have in the fall,” Palumbo said. “It’s going to be difficult for them to be sharing a building and going into portables, so we’re trying to help them have the other things they need to have the most normal experience they can have.”
Garner took pictures outside with attendees throughout the evening with the Kanawha River in the backdrop.
“Whether she’s here in Charleston or 3,000 miles away, she remembers she’s a West Virginian,” said Tomblin.
Palumbo estimated that nearly 300 tickets had been sold for Tuesday night’s fundraiser. Several other state and local leaders attended.