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12th Annual
Back 2 School Campaign
by Cliff Kinsey
Children's Restoration Network is preparing for
its 12th Annual Back 2 School Program for homeless children. Get ready
Atlanta; here we grow again, its reality check time! The reality of life
in metro-Atlanta for more than 3,500 children is that they will be
living in a shelter or group home sometime during the 2005/2006 school
year. By the time a child arrives in that shelter or group home, school
grades are typically in a downward spiral. The perception some of these
kids have about school, life, and themselves is very bleak. There is no
doubt; that many children have good reason to think that. Our job is to
provide hope, to reinforce their self confidence, provide them the tools
needed to succeed, build their self esteem, mentor them, listen to them,
embrace them in a way that they come to realize in their own minds, that
things can and will get better. Helping them understand their choices
and attitudes toward school will empower them to have a better life. We
must make sure they realize that a major key to breaking the cycle of
homelessness is first and foremost getting that basic education to build
on.
Most of these children arrive in the shelter or group home with little
more than a bag of clothes. They have no means of acquiring a new book
bag or the supplies to fill it, which adds to the stress of starting in
a new school, with unfamiliar teachers and students. We need a lot of
help this year to reach our goal for this year’s collection: 3,500 new
book bags and all of the supplies needed to fill them.
The campaign begins July 1st and ends August 4th. We will again be
collecting new bookbags and school supplies at the following Simon
Malls: Gwinnett Place, Lenox Square, Mall of Georgia, Northlake Mall,
and Town Center at Cobb. All Haverty's Furniture stores are also serving
as collection sites. Collection booths will be set up at Center Court at
these malls for the public to drop off donations of NEW bookbags and
school supplies. Please visit
www.simon.com for
more information about our mall sponsors, including directions.
Supplies needed include:
NEW BOOKBAGS, wide and college ruled notebook paper, spiral notebooks, 3
ring binders, pens, calculators, markers, scissors, rulers, crayons,
file folders, glue, dictionaries, and other supplies necessary for
school. Volunteers are needed to man 3 or 4 hour shifts at the malls
during the collection period. Volunteers will also be needed the week
before August 4th to sort and stuff the bookbags with school supplies.
This will be done at a storefront in Roswell. Businesses, churches,
clubs, individuals, and schools are encouraged to hold drives at their
location. Promotional supplies can be obtained from CRN. For more
information or questions on you can help the collection or volunteer to
serve please call 770 649-7117.
How you can help:
Conduct a new book bag and school supply drive at your office, church,
neighborhood, civic/social club, or just ask your friends to help. We
can provide flyers and collection boxes. Serve as a site coordinator at
a “drop off” site around metro-Atlanta. This entails periodically
dropping by a collection site and making sure the box is not running
over and is in good order. Call us to find out which locations are near
you. You could have a “Bake Sale” or other fun event to raise money to
help cover the cost of the program. Volunteers will also be
needed the week before August 4th to sort and stuff the book bags with
school supplies. This will be done at a storefront in Roswell.
Businesses, churches, clubs, individuals, and schools are encouraged to
hold drives at their location. Promotional supplies can be obtained from
CRN. For more information or questions on you can help the collection or
volunteer to serve please call 770 649-7117.
Thank you one and all for enabling Children’s Restoration Network to
hold such a successful program for the past 11 years! It truly has made
a difference!!!
Children's
Restoration Network
8891 Roswell Road
Dunwoody, GA 30350
Phone: 770.649.7117
info@childrn.org
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