Hello everyone! I hope your Thanksgiving was blessed with love, laughter, great food and no weight gain!
In this installment:
Year-over-year kids served: November '06: 35 November '07: 73 November '08: 155
Needs and requests for assistance (general and specialized)
Status of renovation
Thanks Giving
Save the Date
Who we are and our mission
Needed: Boxes of dry, granulated detergent. We put two cups in Zip-Lock bags to send home with each child in a family so they can launder sox and undies in the sink if necessary. (The dry detergent is much easier for us to handle and we don't have to worry about leaky containers!) Thank you!
Requested assistance:
- Christmas Angels to wrap gifts at Lions 4 Kids House for an hour or two on Wednesdays 12/3, 10 and 17 between 4 and 8:30 and Saturdays 12/6, 13 and 20 between 10-2. This is an awesome activity for teens! Help Our Kids and their parents wrap gifts for loved ones. Please let me know if you'd like to participate and the date/time.
We can use three to four volunteers at a time and just an hour or so makes a huge difference! If our year-over-year numbers are any indication we will serve over 300 children in just six open days in December so help is deeply appreciated!
- Mom & Dad Gifts: Over the course of the year we stockpile donations of items Our Kids might like to gift to a significant adult during the holidays. This was an unexpected hit with Our Kids last year since they didn't expect to be able to surprise their significant adult with a gift. If you have something stashed that you were considering regifting, think Lions 4 Kids House! We are especially in need of guy gifts. Donation receipts are cheerfully provided!
- Gifts for Kids and Teens: There are so many requests for donations of gifts from all over the community this time of year, and wherever you support children and families in need, bless you! Lions 4 Kids stockpiles special items over the course of the year to make them available during the holidays but we are always in need of holiday gifts for teens of both genders. While we would never discourage the donation of gifts for younger kids, small gift cards to local retailers, fast food gift certificates, movie certificates, grooming items, etc. for teens are deeply appreciated if you are uncommitted to donating elsewhere. Thank you!
- On the Move with Lions 4 Kids: Volunteers are identifying feeding programs throughout our community and will be visiting various sites for an hour or two in December, January and February passing out warm coats, hats, mittens and mufflers to homeless adults and children and letting families know about the resources available for kids at Lions 4 Kids House. Want to light up someone's life and your own in the process? This outreach brings unexpected warmth to your heart and their bodies and spirits! Schedule of visits forthcoming shortly.
Neat older boy's Christmas gift, BUT: We have received the donation of a near-new boy's 24" bike that needs a new tube for the rear tire. Can you help procure the tube and replace the tire?
Requested specialized assistance for new building:
- Pro cement finisher volunteers to install our hard surfaces: parking lot, drives, walkways, porches and ramps (to be coordinated with Miles Sand and Gravel for materials!)
- finish carpenters to install doors, baseboards and trim, door hardware (est. date: Saturday 12/20)
- helpers to move the custom clothing racks from a local garage to the clothing bank and assemble them (est. date: Saturday 12/27)
- helpers to install slot walls and hanging bars (est. date: Saturday 12/27)
- helpers to install mirrors, curtain hardware (est. date: Saturday 1/3)
- someone to create and install shoe shelves (materials provided) (sometime between 12/27 and 1/4/09)
- someone to build, paint and install book shelves (materials provided) (can start anytime with installation between 12/27 and 1/4)
- someone(s) to assemble several boxed pantry and storage cabinets (materials provided) (can start assembling any time and installation between 12/27 and 1/4)
Status of renovation:
We're in the rush to the finish line before the end of December! We must vacate our present building in front of the library by January 4th and be ready to open our doors to clients on Wednesday January 7th in our newly renovated, energy-efficient building. (No, the City of Bonney Lake will not kick us to the curb if we're not out by Monday, but we do need to get moved and settled by the 7th!)
Sheetrock is being installed, taping will begin upon completion of that, painting follows that. By December 20th we hope to be ready to start installing trims and doors. (Please see "Specialized Requests" above for time frames.)
We are awaiting confirmation on roofing installers this week! If it's a "go" the roof project will commence most likely Saturday 12/6. If you want to help and have not so indicated yet let me know and I'll confirm the date and time when it's known.
Thanks Giving:
Kids Helping Kids:
- We had twenty students from North Tapps Middle School working in our new garden on November 20th and a number of young ladies that helped at the clothing bank on the 19th and the 22nd. Thank you Lauri McLeod for organizing the Pay It Forward Community Service Challenge and to the school for supporting it! Each of the 417 students were asked to donate at least one hour of community service between mid-November and December 3rd. Most of the kids we saw gave double or triple that! What a difference each of those kids made to others at Lions 4 Kids and all over the community!
- Dee Dee Street and student Kayla Wells for their assistance at the clothing bank on 11/22
- Students from around our local school districts are sponsoring resource drives of all kinds to bring to Lions 4 Kids to benefit their peers: coats, hats and mittens; pajamas; personal care items; socks and underwear; toys for Christmas. Some of these activities are Senior projects; many more are "just because". YOU ARE AWESOME and an incredible example for all of us!! Thank you!!
- To John Norlins's Leadership Class at Sumner High School and especially Brittany Fulton for the socks and underwear they collected from students throughout the school for Our Kids! (They followed the clothing drive with a food drive to benefit local food banks!)
- We have drywall installers thanks to Eric and his associate Dennis from EB Enterprises, Drywall Specialists! (Thank you Jessica Larios for the referral!)
- We have concrete and gravel thanks to Walt Miles of Miles Sand and Gravel! (Thank you Lauri McLeod for the referral!)
Our trim and door paint volunteer is Mark Johnson! (Thank you Melissa Johnson for the referral!)
Our storage shed and Donation Station so-they-match-our-new-building painter is Norm Eklund of Norm's Painting! (Thank you Norm for contacting us!)
- Our carpenter, Bryan Long, has been nothing short of steadfast and magnificent, and thanks too to his wife Marilyn for her moral support and finding donations of paint
- Our plumber, Karl Emig of Everlast Plumbing, his daughter Beth and parents Bruce and Janet for their generosity, materials and labor donations, energy and time
- Our electrician Ruben Hernandez owner of Honor Electric, wife Imelda and little boy Domingo for materials donations, labor and time (thank you Tom McBride from Home Depot for the referral!)
- Lee Entrop and wife Cris Shane-Abella for agreeing to cut, create and install the shelving in our work room
- Donations of insulation from Laurie Carter, Cindy Morris and Ruth Wergin
- Kevin Havener for assistance wherever needed. You're fast, thorough, awesome and much-needed muscle!
- Demolition assistance from Daniel and Pat Barrett, Mike Judkins, Dr. Robert Buda, DDS from Scout Troop #172; Ruth Wergin and son Matt; and Mike Kramer
- Sherry Leistico for gardening help
- Kathy Walton for removal of moss on old roof
- Milgard Windows for creation of a required window ASAP
- BJ Miller for insulation assistance
- Rebecca Berry for reupholstering the chairs for our new sitting area
- Jo Bryant for sewing our window toppers for the entire building
- Christy Fuller of The Fuller Basket for donating lots of great Mary Kay items for our teens and clothing
- Barb Wigton of the Bonney Lake PD for collecting clothing for Lions 4 Kids
- Boy Scout Troop 172 members Daniel and Connor for proposing Eagle projects that will benefit Lions 4 Kids
- Our Lions 4 Kids Volunteers who invest countless hours to sort donations, keep our building clean, in order and serve our clients with respect and caring
- Beginning Monday, December 1st, Lions 4 Kids is to be the beneficiary of new clearance garments from Walmart. THANK YOU Rebecca DeLine and Walmart team for your kindness and generosity!
- Fred Jacobsen and others in our community who pass along our email updates to their networks!
- Janet Emig for creating a list of other local community resources for families in need
- Sue Hilberg at the Bonney Lake Sr. Center and their donor for the bags of personal care items donated to Lions 4 Kids
- Linda Morris for faithful photo chronicles!
- David Colbeth for faithful updating of website!
- Andrea Henschell for making sure we have volunteers to serve Our Kids during open hours!
Save the date:
- Friday, December 12, 2008 from 11-5 at Windermere in Bonney Lake: holiday open house and putt-putt golf tourney with $5 golf entry fee to benefit Lions 4 Kids House. Thank you Ken Freed!
- Saturday December 13, 2008 from 1:30 - 4:30 at the Bonney Lake Sr. Center - Holiday Bazaar Fundraiser: consultants such as Sensy (wickless candles); Pampered Chef (cool kitchen stuff); Stampin' Up (stamps and accessories); Uniquely Charming (jewelry); Signature Homes (gift baskets), Sensaria and more, a garage sale of extra nice "stuff", photos with Santa, refreshments, a bake sale of delectable delights with absolutely no calories -- NOT!! and fun for everyone! This is a great opportunity to cross gift requests off your list! If you'd like to donate a baked item for sale please let us know. Of course, tax receipts are cheerfully provided! All proceeds will benefit children served through Lions 4 Kids House. Many thanks to Andrea Henschell, April Young and Iona Catonio for organizing this event!
- Wednesday January 14, 2009: new volunteer training at our new building 7 p.m. - 8:15. No pre-registration is necessary and there is no obligation to participate further. (All volunteers are subject to a Washington State Patrol background check.) There are SO many ways to participate and many activities can be managed from home. The only volunteers asked to commit to a specific schedule are those who work with our young clients. Others can participate as time allows. We are highly flexible!!
- Sunday, March 8, 2009 from 1-5: FINALLY, our Open House and Volunteer Appreciation Day at Lions 4 Kids House. Our beautiful new facility will be open to the public and we will recognize all of the donors and volunteers who have made such a difference to Our Kids in so many ways in this past year.
- Saturday March 21, 2009 (time and venue to be advised): Third annual Death By Chocolate! Sponsored by the Bonney Lake Lions Club to benefit Lions 4 Kids House and support our other community outreach programs. We are working to secure fabulous entertainment like last year's with live and silent auctions of delectible chocolate creations and other great items. Dinner will be catered by award winning Bonney Lake High School Culinary Arts students.
- Saturday December 12, 2009, 8 p.m. to midnight at the Swiss Park "Ballroom": Jingle Bell Ball - a community celebration to benefit the Bonney Lake Food Bank and Lions 4 Kids House. More on this first annual event will be forthcoming. Community members are invited to help plan this evening of dining, dancing and fun and frolic.
Faces of the homeless:
Admittedly, there are addicts, alcoholics and mentally ill contributing to homelessness and poverty. But the greatest percentage of people in poverty that we see are working families, single mothers with children, and families raising relative's kids. You can't imagine the number of grandparents, aunts/uncles and even older siblings raising kids that we see each week.
The reasons are as numerous as the families themselves: foreclosures, acts of nature, addictions, abandonment, divorce, finances -- but very often it's an unforeseen accident, illness or death that ravages people's lives and bank accounts leaving them unable to care for their kids. They have "done everything right" until some unforeseen medical event altered the direction of their lives. Often family members are living with minimal incomes or severe medical issues themselves but open their homes and hearts to the children to provide them with stability and comfort.
Fortunately there are "safety nets" available in the community in the form of family centers, food banks, clothing banks, churches and other community resources that are "springboards" for the families to recover their stability. But the most important ingredient in the whole equation is YOU -- the donors and volunteers who give so generously as you are able to make sure the outreach programs can function and that enable all of us to have the resources we need to serve others. NOTHING happens without you, and speaking for all of us at Lions 4 Kids House, we are so thankful.
Who we are:
Lions 4 Kids House is a private 501(c)3 non-profit foundation entirely comprised of volunteers, sponsored by the Bonney Lake Lions Club, serving children attending school in five east Pierce County school districts: Sumner, Dieringer, Orting, Carbonado and White River. It is estimated there are about 4000 children of school age in these districts that qualify for free or reduced lunch programs due to family income levels. So far we have "found" and served fewer than 20% of the kids who qualify for our services. Our goal in the new year -- find and serve a minimum of another 20%!
Our mission is to provide underserved children with the tools they need to be nicely attired, clean and groomed and outfitted with the necessary school supplies so they look like their peers and stand a better chance of staying in school and succeeding in life. If they have a high school diploma and go on to advanced job training or college and stay out of mischief, they stand a far better chance of breaking the cycle of poverty that often runs in families and becoming tax payers instead of social services users.
These kids, like their non-financially-challenged peers, have unique hopes, dreams, gifts and talents. By helping these children not be targets of derision and ridicule because they look like all the other kids, we believe we are helping to remove some of the barriers that prevent them from realizing their full potential.
Together we ARE making a difference, one child at a time.
If you have questions about any of the above, please don't hesitate to contact me.
If you wish to be removed from our mailing list please let me know.
Wishing you joy and peace in this very special season of the year. With deepest thanks until next time, Carol
Carol Wells-Reed
Founder and Director
Lions 4 Kids House
20825 SR 410 East, PMB #198, Bonney Lake 98391
Message phone: 253-447-3844
Email: cwells-reed@hotmail.com
The Bonney Lake Lions Foundation is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization #38-3753543
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