Vol. 127, No. 47 Thursday, October 19, 2017
NEWS
OPINION
ROOM AND BOARD RATES INCREASE WITH MINIMUM WAGE
FORT COLLINS SHOULD CHANGE U+2 TO ME+3
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PAGE 8
SPORTS
KIRSTIE HILLYER EMBRACES HER HEIGHT PAGE 14
Hurricane hits home Stephanie Cruz, a master’s student in the Toxicology program at CSU, is originally from Puerto Rico. Hurricane Maria has had a huge impact on her life, thus compelling her to take action. PHOTO BY JENN YINGLING COLLEGIAN
Student Sophie Cruz sends aid to Puerto Rico By Austin Fleskes @austinfleskes07
Sophie Cruz packs up another box bound for Puerto Rico, filled with supplies to try and aid relief efforts: water bottles, canned foods and hygiene supplies to send back home. Cruz, a native of Puerto Rico, attends Colorado State University as a full time graduate student pursuing her degree in Toxicology and is one of the go-to
people for donations in Colorado and Montana for relief efforts to Puerto Rico . Growing up in San Juan, Cruz described her childhood as perfect—full of beaches and playing in the neighborhood with a lot of friends. In July 2017, Cruz moved to Colorado to attend vet school at CSU, as there was no vet school in Puerto Rico. “It was very hard for me to move, because I don’t have any-
body here,” Cruz said. “All my family is back in Puerto Rico. I don’t have family in any part of the U.S.” Cruz expressed that she fell in love with CSU when searching for vet school programs. Cruz is currently pursuing her master’s degree in Toxicology, part of her vet prep program. However, when Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico, Cruz began an entirely separate journey, one to try and raise donations for
her home. On Sept. 20, Hurricane Maria hit the coast of Puerto Rico. The hurricane caused several deaths, left hundreds missing, left 1 million without drinking water and 3 million without power, according to a CNN article. Cruz’s family and friends are still suffering from the hurricane. “My family calls me to tell me what’s going on,” Cruz said. “Puerto Rico is so unique, all of
us know each other some way, and if you don’t know that person, maybe another person you know knows that person. We’re like a big family, and for me every Puerto Rican is a part of me, so I feel like I have that responsibility, as a Puerto Rican, to help them.” Cruz added that watching the destruction of Puerto Rico has been very tough on her, as she has watched areas of her see HURRICANE on page 4>>