Document text
McLoughlin students make Sterling their Sparrow By Kevin Opsahl Updated: Dec 09, 2022 06:46 PM A A Six-month-old Sterling Roland attends an assembly at McLoughlin Middle School Friday. Sterling has been adopted by the school as its Sparrow. [Jamie Lusch / Mail Tribune] Against the backdrop of a screen depicting shoes bearing the motto “stepping into compassion,” Sparrow Clubs representative Kena Sampson asked a gym full of 815 McLoughlin Middle School students Friday whether they had ever judged someone by what they wore on their feet. “It’s really silly that we can see somebody’s shoes and we’re going to make a judgment about somebody else,” said Sampson, Sparrow Clubs’ Southern Oregon director. “Here’s the thing: You don’t have any idea what anybody else is going through.” She urged the students to “pause and say, ‘You know what? I don’t know what this person is going through.’” “Taking a moment to have compassion for someone else could make all the difference,” Sampson said. Sparrow Clubs hopes students will learn that compassion and make a difference by performing community service in the name of Sterling Roland, a 6-month-old boy born with numerous health problems, including a rare form of spina bifida. Though doctors have performed surgery on Sterling, his conditions could lead to cognitive and motor function issues later in life. It is estimated the young boy could have at least 20 more surgeries ahead of him. McLoughlin students formally “adopted” the young child as the start of a new club within the school. The nonprofit Sparrow Clubs USA, now three decades strong, chose Sterling as its “sparrow,” who will reap the benefits of funds toward his medical care from an account established by the nonprofit. When a student hits 300 hours of service, $3,000 goes to Sterling’s account. Funds meant for the account go to Sparrow Clubs from local businesses and community members in our valley. One business partner of Sparrow Clubs that attended the assembly was Trina Gillen, vice president of Southern Oregon operations for Elmer’s restaurants. A dollar spent on certain menu items will go to Sparrow Clubs. “He is very young, and he may have an old soul — it’s hard to say,” Gillen said, referring to Sterling. “What a gem he is. To see a child go through hardships at such a young age and still smile. ... It just makes me want to do as much as I can for children like Sterling.” Sterling’s mother, Nicole Roland, heard about Sparrow Clubs through her young son’s doctors, but she was hesitant to get him involved at first. “I wasn’t sure about the publicity and putting his medical information online,” Roland said in an interview. “Then I met Kena, and we decided to go with it, and I’m happy we did. I like the mission of getting the kids involved. It teaches them valuable lessons.” Sampson was impressed with Sterling’s family when they interviewed for Sparrow Clubs. “They completely get it. As soon as I told her our program is about the bigger impact, she got tears in her eyes. She said, ‘I love this program so much,’” Sampson said. Roland, a Rogue Valley native, spoke about the community service component of McLoughlin’s adoption of Sterling. “It’s really important for their growth and later in life; it can come in handy,” she said. “It means a lot to us as a family to have their help — we’ve never really had help from people, so having help from a local school is pretty awesome.” Sampson felt it was important to choose an infant as McLoughlin’s adopted sparrow. “With middle school students, it’s really fun to place babies as their sparrow because their hearts just melt,” Sampson said. “This baby is just heart-melting.” Roan Reed, a McLoughlin student who helped organized the Friday assembly, agrees. “We got to meet him a little while back. He’s the happiest baby ever,” Reed said. She added that over the past summer, she was able to put 115 hours of community service on her “sparrow voucher.” Service ranged from being a docent with the Jacksonville Historical Society and cleaning graveyards. Reed hopes to complete at least 500 hours of service. She said that when it comes to completing community service, “it helps” that Sterling is “so adorable.” Sampson believes “sparrows” like Sterling are “the catalyst for change” and make McLoughlin students realize they can make a difference in their community. Through a slide-show presentation, including written “quotes,” at McLoughlin, Sterling apparently felt the same way. “Thank you for stepping into compassion and making a difference in my life,” he said. Reach reporter Kevin Opsahl at 541-776-4476 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @KevJourno.