Roenicke Scott was floored.
The Hahnville High School senior recently posted a video to social media to ask for help – a difficult step for him, he said. He hoped to raise a bit of money to help afford a car, which was beyond his means. It was something that would allow him to find work and start pushing toward his ultimate goal of going to college.
He didn’t expect the recording to lead to much.
Instead, Scott learned how much he’s meant to so many people. His community rallied to his side, and in a huge way, donating almost $15,000 to his cause through a GoFundMe page (titled Support Roenicke Scott’s Path to College).
“It’s just unbelievable,” Scott said. “I didn’t expect anything close to that large or on that kind of scale. I was unbelievably shocked.
“It really lights a fire in me. Seeing the love and support that I have from so many people, it just encourages me to strive to excellence.”
Scott is a cross-country and track runner at Hahnville. He is the president of Next Gen, a club at Hahnville that holds group meetings at lunchtime – the motto is Peace and Jesus and it’s aimed at spiritual renewal and revival within the school. He is also a leader of the Fellowship of Christian Students at HHS, which meets weekly for Bible readings and discussion of scripture.
Scott said he wrestled with whether he wanted to go forward with recording the video for a few weeks.
“I was thinking about it for a few weeks, but I waited to see what God would put in my heart,” said Scott. “And ultimately, it was in my mind, it was in my heart, and one day when I got home I just did it. I’d been putting it off, and that day I went ahead – just don’t worry about what anyone thinks, if there’s a will, there’s a way and if God wants it to happen, it’s going to happen.”
He hit record, and Scott spoke from the heart. He said he wanted to go to college, but that financially it wasn’t realistic for he or his family. Without the money for a car, he had no transportation. His goal, he said, was to raise $4,500, noting he knew it was a lot to ask for.
“My biggest goal is college, and I don’t know how I’m going to get there,” Scott said in the video. “But I believe there will be a way.”
Scott posted it and the response poured in faster than he ever thought it would or could.
“It was almost immediate,” Scott said. “I’m a pretty extroverted person, so I know quite a lot of people, so I thought (the video) could help … even if I don’t raise the goal, I can put a little money toward it and that would be really great.”
The fundraiser thus far approximately tripled his goal. Scott said the money remaining beyond the purchase of the car will go toward his savings to attend college.
Hahnville cross country coachRandi Elliott said Scott has a magnetic personality.
“He uplifts everybody, even when he’s down he supports everybody and cheers them on,” said Elliott. “He’s always been that person, that soul who is there for everybody else, someone you want your kids to learn from. When he got Next Gen going at Hahnville, you could see his heart grow even bigger.”
Among his long term goals, he would like to study business at the college level, with an eye on one day opening his own business. He said he plans to study ministry as well and become a youth paster, helping to lead young people forward in their faith.
“I’m just so appreciative and so grateful,” Scott said. “And however far I make it in the future, it’s something I’ll always be grateful for.”
