A San Francisco high school student is working to provide school supplies to kids with special needs during the COVID-19 crisis.
Michael Yu, a student at Abraham Lincoln High School, said he’s passionate about this kind of work because his younger brother Christopher has autism.
“I think getting him involved in the community service helped him come out and see what’s around him and to get connected with other people,” Yu said.
Yu is hoping to encourage other kids like Christopher to get involved with community projects. A few years ago, he and his family founded the service group called Share SF.
“You get to meet a lot of different people, listen to their stories and learn a lot from them,” he said.
The goal is to establish inclusion across San Francisco neighborhoods. During the pandemic, Share SF planted a sidewalk garden on Ocean Avenue in the Ingleside District and donated PPE and cleaning supplies to health care clinics that serve special needs children and to the veterans group Swords to Plowshares in San Francisco.
“Many of the special needs students keep working on things over and over again until they get it right. I really admire them for that,” Yu said.
Last month, Yu’s group donated school supplies to the non-profit Support for Families which then distributed items such as colored pencils, markers, stickers and paper to students.
Many kids, especially those with disabilities, have felt isolated during the pandemic. Yu hopes these gestures will help.
“They were missing school, their friends and learning, so it was extra hard for them because their daily routines were suddenly gone. They had a harder time to adjust,” Yu said. “If we can give people what we can offer, this would make things better for all of us.”
If you know someone who is working to keep us safe during the COVID-19 pandemic and would like to nominate them as a KCBS Radio Difference Maker, email differencemakers@kcbsradio.com.
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