TITLE: Honoring Yohann Lopes, founder of Our Helping Hearts, for working to provide food and care items to his fellow Texans in need.

SUMMARY: Honoring Yohann Lopes, founder of Our Helping Hearts, for working to provide food and care items to his fellow Texans in need.

FULL TEXT:
WHEREAS, Yohann Lopes, a fourth grader at Bledsoe Elementary in the Frisco Independent School District, has demonstrated extraordinary compassion for those in need through his work as the founder of Our Helping Hearts; and WHEREAS, Yohann started the nonprofit in 2017, when he was eight years old, after visiting a homeless shelter in India; when he remarked that there were no homeless or hungry people in Texas, his parents drove him to South Dallas after returning home, and he was shocked and saddened by the sight of people on the streets begging and searching for food; and WHEREAS, Determined to do something to help, Yohann invited his friends over to make sandwiches to deliver to homeless shelters, and he was ultimately able to enlist 30 people to make a total of 520 sandwiches; Our Helping Hearts has since grown tremendously, and in 2018, it donated more than 120,000 sandwiches, over 4,500 nonperishable food items, and more than 550 pairs of socks; today, Yohann is also involved in planning the organization's public and private events with schools, churches, corporate offices, and other community partners; and WHEREAS, Yohann continues to come up with new ideas for how to increase assistance to homeless and food-insecure residents; looking to the future, he has plans to set up a mobile food pantry and to begin soliciting donations of unused food from local restaurants; and WHEREAS, Through this outstanding endeavor, Yohann Lopes has proven himself to be a remarkably caring and resourceful young Texan, and he is a source of great pride and inspiration to his family and his community; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 86th Texas Legislature hereby honor Yohann Lopes for working to provide food and care items to his fellow Texans in need and extend to him sincere best wishes for continued success with Our Helping Hearts; and, be it further RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be prepared for Yohann as an expression of high regard by the Texas House of Representatives. Patterson Speaker of the House I certify that H.R. No. 1693 was adopted by the House on May 24, 2019, by a non-record vote. Chief Clerk of the House