Victoria Rodriguez sings to thank students at Antonian College Preparatory High School for funds they raised to support her school. Robert McLeroy/Express-News

"What do you think we should call these kids?" Saenz asked as Victoria peered at the hundreds of high school students assembled in the auditorium.

"Is there a word that describes them?" prodded the principal of Antonian College Preparatory High School.

"A miracle," Victoria replied.

Victoria's miracles donated $13,000 to her school Thursday, a sum they managed to raise in just two weeks.

Antonian students started the fund drive after visiting St. Mary's School by the Riverwalk earlier this month and learning about the school's financial and material needs.

Beth Melia, Antonian's student body president, was motivated to help St. Mary's when she heard about the school's outdated textbooks and half-empty library shelves — things her own school had an abundance of — and saw how much St. Mary's students cared about their school.

"The little preschoolers sang to us, and they were so cute," Melia said. "You could just see the pride in their faces."

After some discussion with administrators, Melia and her peers decided to try to raise $10,000 through a coin collection. With parents, teachers and others chipping in, that amount had more than doubled by Thursday.

Archbishop Patrick Flores, who attended the Antonian presentation, was so moved by the students' generosity that he handed over a check for $5,000. Antonian teacher and coach Jerry Gonzalez, a St. Mary's alumnus from 1975, also pledged $2,600, bringing the total donation to $20,600.

"Stuff like this gives me hope for the future of Catholic schools," said Dale Hoyt, superintendent of Catholic schools, who initiated the fund-raiser when he asked for Antonian's help.

A few years ago, Antonian students undertook a similar drive and raised more than $6,000 for St. Mary's.

The 92-year-old grade school, which sits on the banks of the San Antonio River, has suffered from declining enrollment and a persistent debt that two years ago had grown to $120,000. It has 117 students.

At the time, the school seemed destined for closure. But Flores was swayed by the pleading of students and parents and began calling on the larger Catholic community to help.

Since then, the debt has been substantially reduced and officials have begun making plans for the school's future.

"No matter what happens to St. Mary's ... you've already had an impact," St. Mary's Principal Randy Wilhelm told the Antonian pupils. "You've already touched the lives of 117 students."

That was apparent Thursday.

As Victoria stood on the chair, looking over the lectern, Saenz asked her if she wanted to sing a song that she wrote.

"You have memories, I have memories, we all have memories from the past," she sang. "Some are not very happy. Some are very happy. Today is a very happy memory."

bgutierrez@express-news.net