Local Brothers Help Fund WI-FI Access During Remote Learning

By an edhat reader

Brothers and water polo players at San Marcos High, Jaden and Jordan are used to giving back to both their own community and communities far away. Seven years ago, Jordan wrote a letter to Santa asking for 20 blankets to distribute to the homeless in Santa Barbara, and this began their focus on helping those in need. Just over a year ago, they traveled to India with their family and distributed holiday gifts at an orphanage. 

While many kids their age (Jaden is 17, Jordan is 15) are focused on Zooming with their friends and having fun, Jaden and Jordan continue to give back, volunteering at local homeless shelters serving food every weekend. 

When COVID-19 caused the schools to shut down, the brothers learned that many families at the time did not have access to WIFI. They realized that many of their peers and students of all ages in the Santa Barbara Unified School District (SBUSD) were unable to attend school via Zoom and felt compelled to help in some way. 

They immediately started reaching out to extended family and friends to organize a WIFI fund campaign for the district and successfully raised over $12,000. Funds were donated to the Santa Barbara Education Foundation (SBEF), a non-profit that raises money for SBUSD.

“With 3,000 families in the district in need of financial support to pay for quality WIFI so their kids can participate in remote learning, Jaden and Jordan’s generous donation will go a long way towards meeting this need,” SBEF Executive Director Margie Yayhavi stated. “We truly can’t thank them enough.”

Santa Barbara Education Foundation promotes private support of Santa Barbara’s public education system, serving 14,000 students in 18 schools. For more information, visit www.santabarbaraeducation.org.