"We're so far away from it all, I think this is a good way to reach him," Maui High student government leader Kenneth Eugenio told the Maui News.

Eugenio and fellow junior Cathy Agapay oversaw the card signing as students — some who knew TJ and others only acquainted by his story — penned messages of good will during the lunch recess.

"We need the sniper back on the soccer field," wrote senior Torey Knight. "Come back and coach our boys if you get a chance."

Knight said he looked up to Ponce, a former defender on the Maui High soccer team.

"He didn't yell at us, and he was real supportive."

Junior Jasmine Dollopac said she never really knew Ponce but was a classmate and friend to his fiancee, Melissa Carlos, a senior preparing to graduate June 2 at Maui High.

Dollopac wrote: "You did a great job serving our country. We're waiting for you to get back home. Take care and God bless. You're our hero."

"I think he's going to feel really good about this," Dollopac said as she eyed the numerous signatures on two cards, each about 2 feet wide and 3 feet high.

A week ago today, Ponce was on a patrol in Sadr City, home of the militant Iraqi Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr, when a rocket-propelled grenade slammed into his Humvee just above the windshield.

He suffered shrapnel wounds to his face and hands and was flown to an Army hospital in Germany to be treated for his wounds. He is expected to be flown to a medical center in the U.S. for surgery on his eyes.

"I was tearing up reading about him," Dollopac said. "He graduated from Maui High, and he's one of our own."

Friday's get-well card campaign was coordinated by Maui High Student Activities Coordinator Glenda Joyo and Ignacio Arcas, Ponce's soccer coach for four years.

Ponce stayed in contact with Arcas after he graduated last summer. While on a break in December, Ponce told Arcas he had graduated as the No. 1 sniper in his basic training class, making him a sure bet for an assignment in Iraq.

The coach said his former player last spoke with him by telephone in March, after Ponce had been in-country for about three months.

"He told me he was driving a Humvee, that the weather was getting too hot and that he missed local food," Arcas said.

Ponce also inquired about Maui High's soccer season and expressed concern about his fiancee to Arcas. Ponce was "one of the most mellow, nicest students I've ever coached. He was loyal, and he was real committed," Arcas said.

He said he was impressed by Ponce's commitment to serving his country. While other students were unsure about their future after high school, Arcas said Ponce demonstrated confidence about a career in the military.

"I think if he could have gone since his junior year, he would have," Arcas said.

"You have students who are struggling about where to write, where to go for college and even what to do. Not him; Ponce was fully committed."

The news of the grenade attack and Ponce's injuries in combat was shocking at first for Arcas.

"I'm glad he's coming home in one piece," he said.

Cathy Agapay, another Maui High junior, was more acquainted with Ponce's younger brother, Chris.

"I really think it does make a big difference to show we care," Agapay said. "He needs to know he's not doing this alone. Our whole school, all of Maui, is behind him."