Wednesday, Jun. 29, 2011

Assistance League meets local kids' needs

When elementary students at local schools are given a pair of new shoes through Operation School Bell, many spend the rest of the day walking into walls.

"The kids are so excited to have a pair of new shoes that they keep looking at their feet instead of watching where they are going," said Dee Walker, retired Community in Schools Coordinator at Poe Montessori School in Raleigh.

Each fall for the past 14 years, the nonprofit Assistance League of the Triangle Area's Operation School Bell project has provided shoes, clothing and school supplies to kids at 13 area schools whose families have financial needs.

Operation School Bell also provides clothing for emergency situations throughout the school year, such as families who suddenly become homeless.

"Many of the families are struggling to get food on the table and a roof over their head. They simply don't have extra money for clothing," said Walker, who worked with the program through her position at the school for 11 years and now volunteers with the organization.

Volunteers visit the schools with representatives from Shoe Carnival, which provides the shoes to the group at a discount, to measure the kids' feet. Many times, the kids are wearing shoes several sizes too small.

A few weeks later, more than 900 children are given shoes, socks, jeans, a shirt, a sweatshirt and underwear along with a new backpack filled with school supplies and hygiene products.

The Assistance League accepts donations of new clothing for elementary school age children, backpacks and school supplies. Monetary and gift card donations also are needed. For about $55, the group can outfit one child with the necessities.

"Working with Operation School Bell is eye opening because you only see what you know. When you go into a school, it's amazing that some kids don't have the necessities that we assume that all children have," said Anna Merrett, a volunteer with the organization.

NVIDIA Corp. has supported Operation School Bell for the past five years by matching employee donations of school supply filled backpacks and has given more than 200 backpacks to the project each year. The Assistance League wants to find more businesses and partnerships to help the children.

There are many ways businesses can help, such as hosting a kids' jean drive on casual Fridays or collecting school supplies from employees, Merritt said.

As a chapter of the National Assistance League, the group has more than 75 members and logged more than 17,000 volunteer hours in 2010. In addition to Operation School Bell, the group supplies books and toys for the Children's Emergency Room at WakeMed, awards scholarships to local students each spring and helps the Wake Woman's Center with various needs.

The organization funds its projects through a resale shop, Antiques to Zippers, located in North Raleigh. The store accepts donations of household goods, books, toys and jewelry and offers the items for resale to customers.

"For every day that the thrift store is open, we are able to clothe and give school supplies to four children through Operation School Bell," said president Sharron Grant.

One of the goals for the group this year is to increase membership. The organization is looking for people to volunteer in the thrift shop and to help on the various projects.

"Even volunteering one day a month will give us more hands to reach out to those in need," Grant said.