Help Provide Vital Supplies for Students
Donation protected
Every day I work with students in an underserved community and it is truly a gift that I can do it. Something that has become evident in the last three years of doing this work is the needs that our students have that are outside the purview of what the school, community services, and individual families can provide. Myself and the counseling staff at the school typically take care of some of these needs personally throughout the school year but for next school year, I am reaching out for some help. I know times are tough and things are tight for many so this is truly an ask if you are able to help; no pressure at all. For 2024-2025 I'd like to make sure our students have their most requested items on supply at all times. These items include:
- Water bottles (disposable). Very few kids have reusable water bottles so we always try to have water on hand for them. We go through approximately one case of water per week right now.
- Snacks. Many of the kids do not have enough food at home and although our school is wonderful about ensuring our kids get food when they need it, the counseling office tries to stock up for the students who visit us frequently as well. Every session I have with a student I ask if they've eaten yet that day; 90% of the time the answer is "no" and sometimes they don't know when the next food is coming (typically dinner, but not always) so at the very least we know they have a snack to hold them over. We go through about one large case of snack bags per week.
- Books. Be still my heart, but increasingly this year kids have been asking for books! We do have several lending libraries here for the kids but they are typically books that are for younger or older crowds, not so much the teens. Most of our students do not have a library card or transportation or money for buying books so if we could collect some young adult books to have on hand here, that would be epic.
- Personal Care Supplies. Again, many of our students and families struggle with meeting day-to-day needs and this often includes personal care supplies such as toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant, and feminine products. I'd like to set up a supply here to house those items for kids in need.
Any financial help you can provide is greatly appreciated by me but even more important to the kids you're helping. Trust me, these kids are so unbelievably appreciative of whatever they get. You WILL make a difference.
Thank you <3
Organizer
Ayrin Hnosko
Organizer
Woodstown, NJ