Shannon Richards is continuing her lasting impact on Kingwood Park High School and the extracurriculars in which she has contributed.
Richards has had a child on campus since 2017. Her youngest, Ace Richards, will graduate with the Class of 2024.
She has been involved with everything ranging from band and the athletic booster club to football and tennis.
As a result of all that she has helped with in the Kingwood Park community, she was recognized by Dave Campbell’s Texas Football magazine as the Community Connector of the Week presented by Optimum.
This organization picks an involved volunteer in the community every week for the 12 weeks of football season. Richards was nominated by KPHS football coach Clayton Maple because of her contributions to the football program and athletic booster club.
“When you think about community involvement, Shannon Richards is first and foremost because I told them it's not just connecting football to the community and being in partnership with the coaches and the players in football,” Maple said. “It's what she does across the board at her school, our campus in the library, for band and tennis.”
Shannon, Ace and Lance Richards pose for a photo during a pregame senior night ceremony at Turner Stadium on Friday, October 20, 2023. Photo by Arleigh Doehring (KPTimes.com)
The news came as a surprise to her. She believes there are so many other people deserving of this award.
“It actually means a lot to me to win this award because I feel like I represent a lot of people who could have won this award,” Richards said. “I feel like there are many people that are like me that are really passionate about bringing community within the school. I feel like it's something we've been really trying hard to do for the last several years. And so that's nice for the school to be recognized.”
The award is supposed to spotlight people from around the state who give back to their community. The winning school receives a $1,000 donation (courtesy of Optimum) to the program the winner represents.
“We reached out to coach Maple and asked him who has worked the most behind the scenes – someone who doesn’t do it for the recognition.,” Brett Holland, Partner Services Coordinator of Dave Campbell’s Texas Football said. “(Shannon Richards) loves her community and she was the first person he spoke about. We thought that she had a fantastic presence around here. And it's clear from all of her family, friends and admirers that she's very deserving.”
This story was written and photos were taken by Kingwood Park High School student Arleigh Doehring. She is a senior at KPHS and is one of the yearbook editors.