Poplarville High School’s Future Famers of America is gathering donations to help people in Louisiana and Texas who were affected by Hurricane Laura.

The local chapter is collecting non-perishable food items, water, toiletries and cleaning supplies. The high school’s FFA advisor, J.T. Thomas, is driving the supplies to Louisiana State University, where the Louisiana state executive director for FFA is collecting supplies to deliver to people in the state who were affected by the hurricane.

“There at LSU, he’s kind of a center hub where people can bring stuff…We take it there and help them get loaded or stored so they can move it out,” said Thomas.

Thomas has taught in Mississippi for the past six years. Before that he taught in Washington Parish and was there during Hurricane Katrina.

“I talked to a couple friends over that way. Some of them had major house damage, some of them just had barns that were totally destroyed,” said Thomas. “Most of the problems in that area were not so much water as wind. Just about everyone in that area got some type of damage.”

Thomas took a truckload of donated items collected at the high school to LSU on Thursday, and plans to deliver more next week. Some supplies were then delivered to Beauregard Parish on Friday, said Thomas, and FFA chapters in Louisiana will be making more deliveries next week.

“The FFA is a pretty tight knit group. They know one another and they know the needs. Some of the other FFA chapters in Louisiana started to respond. I know a couple of the FFA chapters are going and setting up some cooking for some of the workers,” he said.

For more information or to make a donation, contact the Poplarville High School Career Development Center at 601-795-8343. Typically, if someone calls during the day to let them know they are bringing a donation, the staff can help unload those items, said Thomas.

“Anything that people could donate, that would be greatly appreciated,” he said.