Amidst school closures across the U.S., our concern has turned to how to best help children who are already living in vulnerable situations.
Many kids in our program rely on school lunches and our Backpack Feeding Program to ensure they are receiving adequate meals throughout the day and on the weekends. Additionally, many children living in poverty who we support don’t live in safe and comfortable environments, and the school day is often a refuge from harsh conditions.
We would like to share some stories from our affiliated projects and our volunteer coordinators to show how your donations are helping children and families through this difficult time.
News about the COVID-19 outbreak can be overwhelming and daunting, especially when the news is about parents losing jobs in retail and the service industry — jobs that often pay so little that families live paycheck to paycheck.
We would like to share some stories from our affiliated projects and our volunteer coordinators to show how your donations are helping children and families through this difficult time.
We want our donors to know that we, along with our partnering organizations, are continuing to do the most we can for children in need.
Bags of food for high school students
We received photos from our volunteer coordinator, Karen, at Knott County Central High School of her and another staff member making food bags for kids to pick up and take home while school is closed during the COVID-19 outbreak. Children would otherwise be receiving free or reduced-cost lunches at school — meals that may not be available at home because of the abject poverty in which they live.
Breakfast and lunch for children
A sponsored child in Arizona receives bags of food on her front porch.
Our volunteer coordinator, Jenny, of Catlettsburg Elementary School, shared with us a picture of herself with her school teammates. Their team had just returned from delivering breakfast and lunch to 53 children in the area who are from families that struggle to provide even the most basic needs to their children.
A countrywide response
Schools across the country have done a fantastic job of sending home educational packets and making schoolwork available online while our nation navigates the response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Also, in states where we work, school staff members are feeding children by coming into the school building each morning and preparing free breakfast and lunch for the students. Many counties have arranged pickup points for parents to receive food bags. Other districts are also going out into the communities, setting up in public spaces such as church parking lots.
Beds and linens for sisters
Donations to our Beds and Linens Fund were able to help two sisters in need before they weren’t able to return to school for some time. Our volunteer coordinator, Jackie, at one of our affiliated schools, became aware that two young girls enrolled in our sponsorship program didn’t have beds at home. With funding from Children Incorporated, she purchased blankets, sheets, mattresses, and bed frames and arranged for them to be delivered and set up in the family’s home.
Working together to make an impact
Together, we will do our best to ensure that children are looked after during this crisis. Thank you for all that you do for children in need through your sponsorships and donations. We are incredibly grateful for your support, especially during this difficult time.
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We have created a COVID-19 Response Fund so that we can continue to support children in our program in the upcoming months. Donations will be used to provide food and emergency supplies to the children in our program who are in immediate need.