FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas — Fort Bend ISD elementary school #54 is still a work in progress in the Sienna area. But the building set to open in the fall of 2023 will no longer be known by just a number.
The board of trustees voted Monday to name the new school after Alyssa Ferguson, a teen who died of cancer.
"She continues to have an impact on the Sienna community and beyond," said board chairman Dave Rosenthal.
Ferguson's lengthy battle with a brain tumor ended just after her 15th birthday. She was in her freshman year at Ridge Point High School.
"You know, it’s been five years since she passed away," said mother Sandy Ferguson. "And so this is an incredible honor that they have bestowed on us and on her.”
Sandy said Alyssa was born with a giving spirit. During her cancer battle, she used her Make-A-Wish Foundation wish to drill a well in Zimbabwe for those without access to clean water.
The Alyssa's World Changers Fund, with the help of others, is now responsible for drilling eight wells and counting.
“In Haiti, in India, in Africa, Myanmar," said Sandy. "Just all over.”
There’s not a day that goes by that Sansy doesn’t think about Alyssa.
"Not one," said Ferguson. "And some days are harder than others.”
But she says her daughter’s short time on earth made an impact worth remembering.
It will no doubt set an example for those who eventually attend the new school.
"And it’ll be great to see her name on the school and all those kids who wondered who Alyssa Ferguson was. Now they’ll know,” said Sandy. "Maybe they'll decide to be world changers too."