Extreme Couponing Tip: Help Homeless Kids by Donating Stockpile Items

zaterdag 7 september 2013

Extreme Couponing Tip: Help Homeless Kids by Donating Stockpile Items

Does your stockpile of personal hygiene and/or household cleaning items overflow? Are you running out of space to store these items? I have a solution for you! You may have already considered donating these items to local shelters, but did you know that your local school district has a homeless liaison who might love to receive a donation?

The Federal Mckinney-Vento Act requires that every school district in the United States have a homeless liaison to assist with the enrollment of homeless students. Many times these liaisons also help families with things such as school supplies, personal hygiene items, and household items like laundry and dish soap.

I am a case worker and counselor in our local homeless liaison’s office, and we give out these things on a daily basis. Just yesterday I met a high school student who had been living in her car. Providing her with things like a toothbrush, toothpaste and a bar of soap had her beaming with joy. She hadn’t had these things in quite a while.

A few months ago I had a mom in my office who just obtained housing. While she had the money to pay her first month’s rent and a deposit, she had nothing to clean her new home with. She did not have laundry soap to use in her new washer and dryer. These are things I take for granted. I do not worry day to day about having enough toothpaste for my children to brush their teeth or enough laundry soap so that my children can go to school with clean clothing. But this mom did, and I was honored to be able to help her with these items.

School district staff often donate out of their own pocket books to help families and students such as these—pocket books that weren’t overflowing to begin with. And I realize your pocket book probably isn’t overflowing either. But the next time you grab a great deal on hygiene items, household cleaner or school supplies, why not take a small donation by your local school district homeless liaison’s office? If you do not know who the liaison is, office staff at your school should be able to connect you with them. Couponing is great, but when you can use it to help a family in need, it becomes awesome!

This is a guest post by Stephanie from Amarillo, TX
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Homeless Man Changes Cop's View of People With One Simple Act

vrijdag 26 juli 2013

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
by Kiri Blakeley 16 hours ago

In case you are ever tempted to judge someone by how they look, think again. A homeless man is being praised after he found a wallet containing almost $500 in cash -- and promptly brought it to a local police station. Detective Lt. Thierry Croizer was so astonished by the seemingly out-of-character act that he's basically changed his entire view of people. He says:

He surprised me. And I was happy to be surprised. It made me reevaluate my perception of people, my first instinct, when I first observe someone.

Isn't this a lesson we could all use? From Susan Boyle to Trayvon Martin, people are often not what they appear. As for homeless people, whether it's the man who returned a woman's lost engagement ring or the man who saved a newborn, they've proven time and again that they are you and me -- without a home.

The 50-year-old homeless man, Hassel Barber, found the wallet lying on a sidewalk in Kingston, New York. He looked inside and saw the $485 cash, but didn't bother to count it because "it wasn't mine." Wow, how simple and truthful that is.

Barber walked to a police station and handed the wallet over to Croizer, who was so touched he posted about the man on his Facebook wall. He told the Times Herald-Record:

I felt the story deserved a little publicity because it just goes to show that you can't judge people by their everyday circumstances or by their appearance.

People began calling the station offering assistance to the man, and he turned down offers of food, saying he has "plenty." As for cash, he'd take an honest reward. But he wasn't about to take what wasn't his.

How many of us would do the same? Luckily I've never been faced with this dilemma, but the idea of someone panicking over their lost cash would likely drive me to the police station. I'd probably weep when I parted with the wallet though.

Barber isn't weeping. Good man!

Have you ever had a homeless person surprise you?

Image via Nickolas Nikolic/Flickr

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