Fiesta medal goes for $1,000, benefits Hope for the Future

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Catholic News Agency

In San Antonio, Fiesta means enjoying 14 days of events, good food and supporting nonprofit organizations around the area. At the recent Lambs to Leaders Telethon, benefiting Hope for the Future and Catholic school education, Khaki & Plaid Gala Homecoming Queen Diana Barrios-Trevino offered two custom, handmade fiesta medals that were created to commemorate her reign as Homecoming Queen. During her interview at the telethon, Barrios-Trevino challenged the next two people who called in and donated $1,000 or more, they would receive one of her custom medals. Within minutes, the phone lines lit up and two generous supporters had made their donation for these special medals. Mr. Juan Barrera, president of the Holy Cross of San Antonio Alumni Association, and Dr. Clifford Chensam called in and secured their medals.

Fiesta medal designer, David Durbin of Monarch Trophy, created only four of the custom medals and presented them to the Homecoming Queen. Barrios-Trevino, who is constantly seeking ways to give back to the community, chose to ā€œsellā€ them off as a way to generate funds for Hope for the Future and to help continue its mission to provide tuition assistance to less fortunate parents and children.

ā€œI feel very blessed that the community was supportive of our efforts to raise money for Hope for the Future, to send more children to Catholic schools,ā€ said Barrios-Trevino.

Following the telethon, the official medal presentation ceremony took place at the Los Barrios Restaurant on Blanco Road to pin the medals on their new owners. Dr.Ā Chensamā€™s grandson, Alejandro, accepted the medal on his grandfatherā€™s behalf. With a smile from cheek-to-cheek, Alejandro received his new medal from the Homecoming Queen, as both his mom and grandmother were on-hand to watch the occasion. Alejandroā€™s mom was excited for the opportunity to be a part of helping others in the community with their familyā€™s donation. She said she was looking forward to placing her son in a Catholic school for the upcoming school year.

Barrera lit up as the Queen pinned on the medal to thank him for his donation to Hope for the Future. He is a product of Catholic school education himself, from kindergarten through twelfth grade and is an alumni of Holy Cross of San Antonio. Barrera shared that he was grateful to be able to give back to other students so they could have the same opportunities as he was given.

Barrera continued, ā€œCatholic education has shaped my life. It has molded me into what I believe is to be a morally upstanding person, someone who cares about others, someone who also cares about giving back.ā€
In addition to Barreraā€™s personal donation to the Lambs to Leaders Telethon, the Holy Cross of San Antonio Alumni Association donated $3,000 during the telethon to help more children in the Archdiocese of San Antonio.

ā€œAnything that we can do to support those who are in need, I think we should do it and as much as possible,ā€ said Barrera.

Fiesta creates a medal frenzy, could the Khaki & Plaid Gala Homecoming Queen fiesta medal be the most expensive medal in 2015? Possibly, but all for a great cause.

(L-R): Julie Seguin, Myrna Chensam, Diana Barrios-Trevino, Alejandro Torres Chensam, Rosanna Chensam, Juan Barrera