Flood victims receive thousands for back to school shopping

The Bellevue Papillion Rotary Club handed out thousands of dollars to flood victims for school supplies Saturday.

Tabitha Valincia and her two children lived in Paradise Lakes before they were flooded out. She said she never imagined her family would still be feeling the effects, nearly half a year later.

Valincia has been focused on finding a new home and getting their life back together when she realized getting her kids ready for school was going to be hard.

A lot of places have donated basic school supplies, but families like Valinica’s said that clothing items are the hardest to get a hold of.

“When the flood happened, that guy over there was 5’4 and now he’s 5’6, so all his jeans look like knee knockers, they don’t work. He went from a size 11 shoe to a size 12, and shoes are expensive. Having anybody reach out to help has been amazing cause we lost everything in the flood,” said Valincia.

Although it’s difficult getting ready for school, according to families, it adds normalcy back into their lives.