Kids lack clothes, books, medicine because Cleveland charity lacks volunteers

Recently children have been leaving Cleveland's Basic Needs

clothing closet without getting clothes, because it lacks

volunteers to get enough clothing on display. This year alone, 315

schools, churches, and agencies were sent enough gift certificates

to provide 360,000 free clothing items to those in need in Garner,

Angier, Fuquay-Varina, and all Johnston County. Back-to- school

stripped the racks and with Thanksgiving and Christmas coming,

organizations that would not think about helping their nieghbors

from January to October will be giving out Basic Needs free

clothing gift certificates. Without your help it will not be

available.

Volunteers must handle more than 400,000 clothing items a year,

because 70% of the donations will be dirty or torn or worn. We use

the same standards most charities use, except we do it in fromt of

our donors and neighbors. We are so full we don't have or want a

hiding place. There are boxes under most of the clothing racks

with clothing jammed in them, waiting for help to get them on

display. We have not been able to handle and ship excess clothing

from the community to Haiti or Armenia for months due to the lack

of volunteers. To keep from getting buried, the dirty, torn, and

daily excess is trucked and sold to Williams Medical in the Triad

and the little money received is then used to buy food or pay the

rent and other expenses. The retail value of the free clothing

provided in 2008 was over $1 million.

Cleveland food pantry provides over 120,000 meals a year to keep

hunger away from its neighbors. It lacks trained volunteers to

hand out the food during the hours the charity is open. The pantry

brings about 120,000 pounds of food from the Food Bank in Raleigh

at a cost of thousands of dollars every year. Without adequate

volunteers appointment calls are missed, a food delivery to a widow

is not made, food cannot be brought in from Raleigh, and errors are

made in handling the food distribution. The retail value of the

food provided has been $400,000 annually.

Most residents in Johnston County would benefit if they carried and

used the prescription drug discount card freely distributed by 67

North Carolina counties and Basic Needs, but there are not enough

volunteers to get it to all the residents who need it. The 7,000

local residents who use it monthly save $1.5 million per year.

Without volunteers, it will remain a secret program and our

neighbors might not be able to afford their prescriptions.

The Cleveland Library acquired 3.3 books for every resident of

Cleveland - 50,000 or more, set up its computer lab with free

Wi-Fi and ADSL Internet. The books require 300,000 labels and

pieces of tape. The books can't be checked out until volunteers

are found to prepare them, after donations are received to pay for

all the labels and tape. The Internet catalog will take even

longer, but is necessary for automated checkout. Did I mention

that until donations come in to buy library cards, boards for

shelves, and other renovations, the library will be hampered in its

services.

Cleveland's Basic Needs asked the community for $50,000 in support

for the year and for enough volunteers to meet the challenge. Some

donations arrived and 300 volunteers showed up for an hour or so.

Even without receiving the full level of support, the community

charity was able to provide $5 million in beneits. Nothing was

done in isolation. It all required the community's support. Thank you.

And now we ask again for your financial assistance and volunteer hours.

 

Ron, can you post the hours and days you need volunteers. Thanks.


My teenagers need humbling.....

 

KB- Ron is open on Monday evenings from 6-9 and Saturdays from 9-6. I think he has Thursday hours too, but I'm not sure.

Show up with the kids. Depending on their age, you might need to stay with them while they volunteer, but he could sure use the help.

Mini Me used to volunteer alot with Ron, and she took alot away from it. It's a great way to give back.

 

I'd like to do this with my 9 yo sometime. My kids take for granted what they have, they need to learn what it means to really have nothing.

 

What about contacting the cubscouts, boy scouts or girl scouts?

 

Thanks Jen! I will show up Monday night! I don't mind staying and helping out too.

And thanks KDog...great idea! I think I will mention it to their Youth Group Leader too, they are currently looking for ways to help out in the community.

 

Along the lines of Boyscouts/Girlscouts...this would also be a great thing for sports teams to help with. All of the high schoolers could use community service hours, but a lot of teens feel uncomfortable doing something on their own. Surely middle school aged kids would be mature enough to hang clothes or whatnot, too. If they had a group to come with, I'm sure you could get several groups of pretty industrious kids in there, and a few good chaperones. I will check with mine, and try to pass the word around...and try to find some time on a regular basis to help out.

 

He is there Thursday's 6-9 as well for volunteers only.

 

Don't give them anything?

That may sound mean, BUT times are tough for everyone, I can imagine in your DH's line of work, ya'll scrambled or probably still are to meet the bills, just like the rest of us in the home business industry.


Example: "Kids times are tough this year and Santa can only bring you 1 thing, think hard about what you want and we'll send him a card"

Saves you $ and kid learns they can't have EVERYTHING they want.


note: I don't have kids. :lol:

 

I do and I agree, when ds wanted his Disney Trip he had to save his own spending money, from Birthday, Christmas and when he stayed with the grandparents he would find money under the coach, chairs and yes even in a jar twisted but he worked hard for his money, he ended up with 500.00 over a year's time!!

 

Harley - believe me, my kids don't get much...but I'm always hearing "this kid has a playstation" and "this kid gets to go to the fair" or "this kid's parents got him a cell phone" etc...I actually NEVER buy them anything "extra", and they have a wallet with money they earn in it, that I have to hide from them because they like to spend!!! But it's just all the little things they don't appreciate, and as much as we try to explain to them that not everyone has the "finer things" (like parents, money for Xmas, a nice home with food on the table) they just don't get it. Of course, 2 of them are really still too young, but the oldest one definitely is old enough to start really understanding and appreciating.

 

Does he need any help??? :jester:

 

I actually JUST told this to my kiddo yesterday. He started listing off all the things he wanted to look up on the internet for his Christmas list and I broke it down pretty quick for him. I had to do some creative analogies but I think he got the picture that Santa only has so many elves to make so many toys and there are other kids in this world other than him.

 

Hours vary by program and day of week

Basic Needs Ministry clothing closet and thrift fundraiser and Cleveland Library/computer lab are open:
Monday and Thursday 6 p.m.-9 p.m. and Saturday 9-6

Cleveland Township Emergency Food Pantry is open:
Monday 6 p.m.-9 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m.-6 p.m.

Thank you for asking. Information on the Internet at: http://4042needs.org/

 

I know it's short notice, but a 4042 day at Basic Needs would be nice. We have social get togethers, home-based business parties - how about a volunteer day?


I'll be there this Saturday to kick the first one off.

 

Good idea... you bringing cookies????

 

I will if you come sort clothes!

 

as long as you don't know me Seabee... 8):lol::lol::lol: shhhhhhhh........

What time???

 

The hours are from 9 to 6, I can be there at 9 and I will probably spend most of the day. Find the recipe for those bacon cookies on the other thread, we'll test them out while we work!

 

sounds good.... oh your expecting me to work... I'm a supervisor... I don't work, but I will tell you guys what to do... :lol::lol: