Probably the most influential post I've ever written was discussing the 2200 homeless kids that are in Akron and the only group that is solely responsible for helping them: Project R.I.S.E. (Realizing Individual Strength through Education).
You, as I, were incredibly moved by these kids and Project RISE.
I wanted to let you know about an annual dinner they do at Akron's Salvation Army.
The evening includes arts and literacy activities, parent-child activities, Thanksgiving dinner, giveaways, and entertainment. It's an amazing event.
All the tables are all decked out in Thanksgiving festivities. There will be a "living history" presentation and a lot more.
Here is the write-up from last year's event: Harvest Dinner 2014.
I don't need to tell you, I'm sure, that if someone doesn't deserve to be homeless it's thousands of kids.
The Salvation Army and Project RISE understand that better than most of us. They do a huge amount of work to make these kids' lives a little more pleasant.
I was excited in sharing this with you because I thought you might be interested in knowing about it.
I also am SUPER excited to let you know that I'll be giving away many of the shoes you paid for through Go Fund Me. You so far have donated $1,185 to getting brand new shoes for homeless kids.
The shoes are pouring in. I've ordered 80 pairs for boys and 80 pairs for girls. I paid just over $5/pair for the shoes. (I am a super fiscally responsible person and take your donations very seriously.)
I'll also update my accounting spreadsheet soon and share that with you. I want to be totally transparent with all of this. You should also know that all of the donations you do through me are ZERO overhead donations. Other than a small fee that Go Fund Me charges, every penny goes to the project that's being funded.
You can see some of the shoes in this video:
So I'll be giving those away to the kids during the dinner.
I checked with Project RISE to see if they needed anything for the event. It looks like they have all the food and all the volunteers.
But they are still in need of some money for the special projects that will be happening during the dinner. They need to purchase instructional supplies and that sort of thing.
If you are interested in helping with that they would be incredibly grateful.
I've set up a GoFundMe specifically for this dinner.
Any amount of money means a lot. Seriously, a dollar means you are thinking of these kids.
If you don't have the money then please don't feel obligated.
But say you made coffee at home tomorrow morning instead of going to Starbucks. There's $5.
Or you cooked at home instead of taking the family to McDonalds. There's $20.
Any amount would be amazing. Together we are going to cure homelessness in Akron. (Did I tell you that? No? Hmm. I meant to. But yeah. That will be happening. More on that later.)
We lift the weakest among us up one inch, one person at a time.
If you'd like more information, here are two awesome people at Project RISE:
Rachel Breece, Child & Family Development Specialist
(330) 761-2969 / [email protected]
Debra Manteghi, Program Manager & APS District Homeless Education Liaison
(330) 761-2969 / [email protected]
Paid For By The People for Sage Lewis