Wednesday, Aug. 17, 2005 | ||
Bad Links? | County seeks clothing for school childrenAppropriate clothing for all school children. This should be a goal for all school children in our county. Thus, the development of a community project through Fayette County DFCS, Project A.C.F.A.S.C. The purpose of this project is to make sure that no child in Fayette County goes to school without adequate clothing. Since this project began in April 2003, 179 referrals have been received for children needing clothing. A staff from Fayette DFACS coordinates the requests. The children are referred primarily from school counselors who know the families in their school and know their circumstances. Other referrals come from DFCS staff and private and public pre-school programs. Each referral indicates the need the child presents, i.e., the child is wearing clothing which is too small, too large, worn over and over again, or is worn in character, or inappropriate for weather conditions. Once a referral is received, the child is matched with a partner who wishes to shop for the child and obtain requested clothing items. Some Partners prefer to donate money or gift cards. The partner gets only the childs first name, age, and sizes, as confidentiality of the child is respected. Usually, a partner shops and returns the items to the project coordinator, who then gets the clothing to the referral source, who gets the clothing to the child. This process should take about 7 to 10 days. Thus, everyone one acts fast - the A.C.F.A.S.C. acronym - to get the clothing to the child in need. School groups, womens church groups, youth groups, social and civic clubs, businesses, individuals, and families have joined as partners. To date, there are 63 partners. More are needed to keep up with the ongoing referrals for children needing clothing. Here are some of the comments from project referral sources: Thanks for helping this family. This has been a great help to them. Thanks for helping our student. He was very pleased with his new outfits. I wish you could have seen her face when she got her new shoes. She lit up like a light bulb. My student was very grateful for their new clothing. The parents were also. This is a great resource. Some of the childrens parents are experiencing temporary financial hardship. Some of the children appear to wear hand-me-downs which are ill fitting. Some wear clothing with holes or are very worn. For all of these children this project allows them to obtain new clothing, purchased just for them, and their confidence is boosted. Children need to fit in with their peers, and this is one resource which can help to achieve this need. Partners have also expressed great satisfaction. They enjoy being able to help children in such a significant, yet doable, way. Many indicate they have a wonderful time while shopping for the children. Many have even enlisted the help of others, as they have shared their quest. One partner shared, when I told the sales clerk what I was doing, she pitched in some of her own money to help buy the childs clothing. This program is a win-win situation for the children, families, partners, and the community. It helps to boost confidence, self esteem, and sometimes hope. For more information about how to become a partner, call Sharon Herbert, Fayette County DFCS, 770-460-2569. |
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