In January 2020, more than 580,000 people experienced homelessness in America. Experts say that while no official nationwide count was taken in 2021, the number has only grown as the pandemic ransacked people’s jobs, health, stability and lives.
In its endeavors of benefitting homeless kids, The Orange Blossom Gardens Lions Club learned about how The Girl Scout Alumnae Silver Trefoil Group of The Villages helps provide local school-going children with books and pajamas through an annual drive.
For the upcoming drive, Lions contributed $1,000 to buy necessary items. This charity drive is expected to last from the beginning of October till early December.
Judy Kohn, the new president of the OBG Lions Club, and members gathered on July 28, at Paradise Regional Recreation Complex to find ways to help more people within the community, collaborating with Silver Trefoil Group.
“Whenever the Lions Club needs a hand, the community has stepped up to help us,” said Kohn, of the Village of Silver Lake. “We try to do the same for the community when they also need help because we try to serve the community and make it a better place, one organization at a time.”
Judy Schober, a member of the Silver Trefoils, decided to expand the project founded by a former school teacher, who saw on the ground level the need of local children.
“This is our 13th year of hosting this drive, working with the tri-county schools to help students who are homeless or needy,” Schober, of the Village of Pinellas said. “They could be a child in foster care, a teenager sleeping in a car or a child living with their grandparents or other relative who is constantly on the move or wearing the same thing over and over again.”
Last year, the drive managed to collect over 3,000 books and 6,000 pairs of pajamas, all given to children up to age 18.
Usually, garments for boys are harder to buy for than girls, but the group is keen to provide help for children of all ages, genders and sizes as per Ashley Gussler, a Kinship Case Manager for Kids Central Inc.
“We estimate that there are over 1,437 homeless students living throughout the tri-county during the school year, and over 300 of those students are living with a relative,” she said. “If a kid is not living with a biological parent, the state considers them homeless, but this program is one of the best things we can do for the children. It gives them a sense of security and confidence, and they are so excited to receive them.”
For more information about the drive, contact Schober at 630-640-5386.