Last week, for the first time in his life, ISU student Alex Kuhn was evacuated.

“I’d never been through anything even similar to this before,” he said.

Kuhn, senior in elementary education, was in Houston completing a semester of student teaching when Hurricane Rita struck. He was evacuated to Aldine Independence, Texas.

He was one of 10 ISU students student teaching in the area, said Gayle Huey, program coordinator for curriculum and instruction. Huey said she called the principal of each school to make sure the ISU student working there had somewhere to evacuate to.

“I went to school on Wednesday, and there was an announcement at noon – there wouldn’t be any more classes that week because of the hurricane,” Kuhn said.

The students in his classes seemed calm, and parents were making necessary preparations, he said. Before the announcement was made, several parents called to inform the school that their children would not be in attendance the next few days, Kuhn said. Classes will resume Wednesday.

When Kuhn returned to his apartment Monday, nothing had been damaged.

“In hindsight, I wish I’d stayed; but I know I probably did the right thing,” he said.

Kuhn said the hurricane was not as damaging to Houston as was expected.

As Hurricane Rita swept through the south, three million residents evacuated the Houston area.

Two families came to Ames seeking Red Cross aid, said Doug Yetman, executive director of the Lincoln Way Chapter of the Red Cross. In contrast, 23 families came for relief from Hurricane Katrina.

Both families are staying with extended relatives in the area. The Red Cross provided each family with financial assistance in the form of a type of debit card, Yetman said.

The Lincoln Way Chapter of the Red Cross is planning to teach classes to prepare volunteers to react to emergency situations, such as hurricanes. The classes will cover topics including mass care, sheltering and family services. Registration is available at www.lincolnwayarc.org.

No volunteers from the Ames area have gone to help victims of Hurricane Rita. Several people are willing to go, however, Yetman said.

The Government of the Student Body is working to raise funds to help the victims, said Angela Groh, GSB president.

GSB, in conjunction with U.S. Cellular, is planning to hold a scavenger hunt Tuesday to raise money to help with the relief of Hurricane Rita.

U.S. Cellular will donate $50 for each participant, up to $5,000, said Chris Deal, vice president of GSB.

The scavenger hunt will last approximately a half-hour, and the person or team with the shortest time wins $600.

Second and third prizes will be $300 and $150, respectively. The participants will use U.S. Cellular equipment to participate, which will be provided.

To register, a booth will be set up the day of the event from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. south of the Campanile, or anyone interested can e-mail GSB cabinet secretary Jared Bartel at [email protected]. There is no fee to participate in the event.

Students interested in helping the victims should look on the Internet to find a venue looking for what the student has to offer, Yetman said.