SAN ANTONIO — The Salesian Sisters of San Antonio hosted a community watch party for students and families at St. John Bosco School on Tuesday night instead of traveling to Oklahoma City for Game 5 of the Spurs’ playoff series. The event followed national attention the sisters received after cameras showed them praying for the Spurs during Game 4.

"We’re not about getting media hype for ourselves," Sister Bernadette Mota said. "That’s the last thing that we desire." She added that the sisters had received multiple offers to send them to Oklahoma City but declined, saying, "We had other people who had offered to send us to Oklahoma as well. Obviously, our mission isn’t to get to Oklahoma."

San Antonio resident Megan Cherry launched a GoFundMe campaign after the viral reaction to the sisters’ prayers. "We all were super touched by the game," Cherry said. "We saw the sisters there praying for the Spurs and it went super viral." The campaign began as a joke among friends and initially raised $850. After contacting the sisters, Cherry said they asked her to remove the fundraiser and redirect the money.

The sisters instead requested support for a local watch party. "Instead of sending us to Oklahoma, we said, ‘Can you help us do a watch party with our young people and their families?’" Bernadette said. "That means even more for us. But we are going to pray for the Spurs."

The sisters said several buildings on the St. John Bosco School campus require repairs, including foundation work estimated to cost between $1 million and $2 million. They also cited deteriorating concrete, a damaged playground, and the lack of a school bus as pressing needs. "We’re in great need financially," Bernadette said.

The Salesian Sisters hope the recent attention helps shine a light on the needs of families and children they serve on San Antonio’s West Side.