Help for Uvalde

Texas grocery chain donates $10 million to rebuild Uvalde's Robb Elementary School

H-E-B is supporting the people of Uvalde.

Courtesy rendering

After the school shooting in Uvalde last month, H-E-B did what it's become known for: stepping up to help Texans in need. Beyond giving $500,000 to victims and their families, the San-Antonio based grocery chain deployed its disaster relief trucks to the South Texas town to provide meals, supplies, and further recovery resources in partnership with local nonprofits for the people of Uvalde.

Now, the company is pledging $10 million to help rebuild Robb Elementary, where the massacre took place.

Built in the 1960s, the elementary school serves approximately 538 students in grades two through four. The school has been permanently closed since the events on May 25, 2022, and plans are in place to demolish the building so that no students or staff ever have to return to the site of the tragedy.

In a news release, the Butt family and H-E-B said they will commit $10 million to help build a new elementary campus in Uvalde. Longtime supporters of public education, the Butt family and H-E-B will work as founding donors with other stakeholders and organizations on the development of this project.

Texas firms Huckabee and Joeris General Contractors, which are also founding donors, have also made generous commitments to donate their services and time to this project, which will help the children, families, staff and Uvalde CISD community move forward together.

“Our first store in Uvalde opened in 1959, and Uvalde people are our people,” said Charles Butt, H-E-B’s chairman, in the release. “As we continue to mourn tremendous loss, I join with my family and H-E-B in working to ensure the Uvalde community can move forward from this tragic event. Our children are this country’s future, and our schools should be a safe place where children can thrive and envision new possibilities.”

According to the release, the new campus will significantly enhance educational offerings, implementing state-of-the-art safety and security measures and infrastructure to support the availability of new technology. The location and design of the new campus and timeline for the project have not been determined, but the school district will work closely with the Uvalde community, donors, and other stakeholders to solicit ideas and gather feedback for the project.

Additional contributions to support this project can be made by donating to the Uvalde CISD Moving Forward Foundation, a nonprofit charitable organization established to both raise funds for the new elementary campus and support the immediate and ongoing financial needs of Uvalde CISD. Donations can be made by visiting UvaldeCISDMovingForward.org.

"We will never forget those who were senselessly taken from us on that tragic day," says Uvalde CISD Superintendent Dr. Hal Harrell on the Moving Forward website. " ... we want to honor their legacy as we work to build our future."

texas charity supermarkets

Animal News

Hunt County man arrested for animal cruelty to puppy from Dallas

SPCA

Jacob Paul Nichols arrested for animal cruelty in Hunt County, Texas.

On Tuesday, June 17, a resident of Greenville, Texas was arrested for animal cruelty after allegedly letting a puppy starve to death.

According to a release, Jacob Paul Nichols was arrested and charged with Texas Penal Code 42.092, Cruelty to Non-Livestock Animals (b)(1) after allegedly torturing his puppy over a span of several months, causing unjustifiable pain and suffering which ultimately resulted in her death — a felony of the third degree.

Nichols was located and arrested in Johnson County where he was booked into Johnson County Jail and held on a $200,000 bond.

On June 6, SPCA of Texas’ Animal Cruelty Investigations (ACI) Unit Chief Investigator was contacted by the ever-diligent Hunt County Sheriff’s Office in reference to a deceased puppy that was discovered inside a dumpster at a Greenville apartment complex.

The small tan puppy was found lying on her side in a medium-sized crate. She was emaciated and had sharp, overgrown nails.

An SPCA of Texas Investigator took the puppy to the SPCA's Russell E. Dealey Animal Rescue Center for a forensic necropsy. The exam showed the puppy was 5.5 months old and weighed only 7.6 pounds when she died. She perished due to long-term starvation and dehydration, and had suffered for a prolonged period of time.

The puppy had a microchip, which revealed that she had been adopted by a Dallas resident from a North Texas animal shelter in January 2025. The puppy, named Sandy, was rehomed to Nichols on February 13 through a rehoming website that allows potential adopters to be screened prior to rehoming. (The release does not identify the adopter or explain why the adopter was dumping the puppy after only a month of ownership.)

Nichols signed a contract stating that he agreed to “care for the pet in a humane and responsible manner and to provide him/her with clean and adequate shelter, food, water and veterinary care.”

The SPCA of Texas ACI Unit confirmed with Nichols that the dog had been in his care. Interviews with Nichols and other witnesses revealed evidence that the dog had been neglected over a span of months and left to die in the crate without food or water.

“No animal deserves to suffer in silence the way this puppy did. The evidence indicates that she was trapped, neglected and ultimately starved to death over a span of months,” said SPCA of Texas’ ACI Unit Chief Investigator Courtney Burns, CAWA. “The level of cruelty in this case is staggering, and the SPCA of Texas and Hunt County Sheriff’s Office are committed to ensuring justice is served.”

animals