People lending aid to Jones High School

By Melissa Maynarich, NEWS 9

Ever since Jones High School was destroyed by a fire, people across the state have come to help.

It's been one month since the flames damaged 27 out of the 30 classrooms on campus. After numerous donations, the students are learning in a makeshift classroom where computer science is taught.

The computers they're using were donated by the Great Plains Technology Center in Lawton.

The classroom has a wall that was built by crews organized by the Oklahoma State Homebuilder's association to divide a big room into two.

The desks were donated from the Eastern Oklahoma County Technology center, along with the chairs.

"Companies that I've never talked to have sent cash donations to help out with the effort as well," said Jones High School Principal, Carl Johnson. "So it's coming from all over the state."

Between classes, the students are walking over gravel that Martin-Marietta in Davis donated.

"Madewell and Madewell donated their time and labor and their trucks to drive down to Davis to pick up that fill material and bring it back," Principal Johnson said.

Things you can't see when you look over the Jones High school campus is the time and labor donated to get things a little closer to normal. A lot of that came from the Baptist church across the street.

"We immediately, the first day as the fire was still burning, offered our building for whatever the school wanted to use it for," said Pastor Steve Lopp of the First Baptist Church of Jones. "Then we made arrangements, had to adjust a lot of classrooms."

One classroom is still being used for special education. And this larger room is the temporary cafeteria. And that's how school at Jones High is going to be for a couple years, temporary.

Until what's burned down, can be torn down, and built up again.

We want to know who's making a difference in your life. E-mail your ideas to MakingADifference@News9.net