‘Something to smile about’: Texas teens raise $65K to replace downed trees at their school

Ella Gonzales
·3 min read

When a nasty autumn storm blew through North Texas in September of last year, it did more than break limbs and twist trunks of decades-old oak trees. It tugged on the heartstrings of four teen boys.

For most of their young lives — 12 years to be exact — Connor Karazissis, 14, and Austin Jones, 15, had played around the stately oaks at The Oakridge School. Their friends — Evan Krum, 14, and Brady McGraw, 15 — were introduced to the trees when they started their elementary education at the Arlington prep school.

“Every year, I’ve always been so devastated about all these trees,” Karazissis told the Star-Telegram. “So, I asked my mom if I can do anything. And she said, ‘maybe that we could raise some money or something like that’.”

But they never dreamed they would raise $65,000.

Each passing year, as storms strike North Texas, forceful gusts would shear off branches and topple trees at The Oakridge School in Arlington. The casualties of last year’s storms were the final straws for four young friends.
Each passing year, as storms strike North Texas, forceful gusts would shear off branches and topple trees at The Oakridge School in Arlington. The casualties of last year’s storms were the final straws for four young friends.

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The oak trees dot the lovely campus of Oakridge, lining meandering pathways that lead the boys to their classrooms. Each passing year, as storms strike North Texas, forceful gusts would shear off branches and topple trees. The casualties of last year’s storms was the last straw, according to Karazissis.

Something had to be done. He had to do something.

Recruiting his friends to help was a no-brainer. They’d all shared memories around the oaks. It was not a hard sell. The boys all agreed to join forces — do whatever it would take.

“So I’ve got these [three] friends of mine. And we had a fundraiser to get the trees planted again.” said Karazissis with a broad smile while sitting for a video interview with his friends.

From left, Connor Karazissis, Brady McGraw, Austin Jones, and Evan Krum standing next to one of the many oak trees at The Oakridge School.
From left, Connor Karazissis, Brady McGraw, Austin Jones, and Evan Krum standing next to one of the many oak trees at The Oakridge School.

They went to Matt Burgy, Oakridge’s head of school, to ask if they could organize a fundraiser.

“Can we do this?,” they asked.

Sure, “You guys can do it,” they said Burgy told them.

“And we wondered, ‘like by ourselves?’,” Jones said.

Apparently so.

They shot a video showing why the oaks were so important to them. Playing tag, running around the trees, building log cabins with sticks, were a few memories Karazissis remembers. Krum recalls using the oak trees as football markers for endzones. The large oaks gave McGraw a feeling of home and comfort.

“As I’ve grown older and into high school, I’ve come to realize that the oaks I have grown up with have come to symbolize what Oakridge is about: a family that supports you and grows with you,” Jones told the Star-Telegram.

At the Super Supper and Auction annual school gala, the video was projected up on a large screen. It showed where and how to donate. The boys raised an astounding amount of money — enough to plant nearly three dozen trees at $2,000 each.

“In a world so full of ugliness, The Oakridge School community gave us all something to smile about,” said Susan Jones, Austin’s mom.

Epilogue: The future is bright for the young men. Jones said he would like to become a cardiac surgeon. Karazissis said he wants to play baseball in college and study business. Krum said he will also give college baseball a swing and go to medical school. Mcgraw said he is interested in some sort of design or architecture path.