NORTHRIDGE : $250 in Quake Aid Goes a Long Way for Student

Considering the multimillion-dollar recovery estimates that circulated in the aftermath of the Northridge earthquake, $250 might not sound like very much money.

But for Richard-Edward de Vere, who lost his home, his possessions and two of three part-time jobs to the temblor, it’s practically a gold mine.

“Now I have breathing room,” said the 36-year-old Cal State Northridge theater major, one of six recipients of a student-sponsored scholarship. “It’s such a pressure off me.”

The Student Earthquake Relief Scholarship was created by CSUN public relations students in May to assist fellow students whose education was put in jeopardy after the quake. To raise money, the students distributed about 1,000 collection canisters to retail stores and restaurants near campus. They collected enough to give six students $250.

The grant means de Vere will be able to complete his degree program.

A television set crashed into de Vere’s forehead during the pre-dawn quake, leaving a wide gash that required stitches. But his injury was only a precursor to the turmoil that followed. He lost nearly all his possessions when his apartment was red-tagged, including his theater books and notes from his classes. He temporarily lost two of his three part-time jobs, which were on the CSUN campus. His other workplace, in a Woodland Hills office building, was also shut down for several weeks while repairs were made.

De Vere said he will use the $250 to defray the cost of tuition, about $625 for the fall semester. He was supposed to graduate in the spring, but the financial strain made it impossible for him to pay for classes.

“I only have one pair of shoes,” he said. “That tells you how I’ve been cutting corners.”

Directors of the relief effort say the canisters are no longer in stores, but they plan to keep the fund open to assist as many of the students who applied as possible.

Cyndy Perry-Rodgers, who helped organize the effort, read the grant applications.

“I could feel my heart just wrenching,” she said. “CSUN is made up of a lot of people who are putting themselves through college, and this sort of set them over the edge.”