Homeless Students MDUSD – How to help
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Written By: Mayor Concord California
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(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...I made it to the MDUSD District office before they closed. I had a great conversation with Lori Amenta the Assistant to the District General Council. Lori is working hard to bring donations in for these kids and explained she is happy to work longer hours and through lunch breaks to get things done for HOPE. I dropped off my donation which they were thankful for and I got to hear some more stories about kids in Concord and surounding cities that are less fortunate than us. Trust me, if you are reading this blog then there is a good chance you have more than most of these kids.
The story in the Contra Costa Times really pulled my heart strings. Maybe that’s melodramatic but the article did touch me enough to do something about it. I wasn’t always the Mayor of Concord, I remember growing up with financial problems and I have made every effort to make sure my family and I don’t have to worry about food on the table or a roof over our heads. As I mentioned in the previous post about homeless students, kids should not be going without food and from the stories I heard while talking with Lori some of them don’t even have enough blankets to stay warm at night.Tragic.
This is the season of giving and I am asking the readers of this blog to give something to help support these kids.The MDUSD does not have an online system to receive donations which they really should look into, so in the meantime here are some ways you can help if you can’t drop off your gift.
Gift Card Mall is the company that serves Safeway gift cards as well as the other hundred stores you see filling those end caps at the grocery store. At Gift Card Mall you can purchase a card and have it mailed to the school district if you can’t drive it there yourself. (address at the bottom)
Since many of these kids don’t have warm clothes or even blankets, you can also get gift cards at Target.com, order one online and have it sent to the district as well.
Now you are always welcome to pick something up and drop it off at the MDUSD office. I know that most of you are busy people and may not be able to get to the office before they close at night, that’s why sending them something is just as good.
Anything helps. Gift Card Mall can create a card as little as $5.00, Target starts at $10.00. So there is really no reason you can’t donate something. Sure, I’ll be going without my Venti Nonfat Mocha for a few days but somehow I feel better knowing that I just helped feed some people.
Here is the information again about how and where to donate.
Target, Safeway or other gift cards for homeless students can be dropped off at the Mt. Diablo school district office, 1936 Carlotta Drive in Concord or sent to James Wogan, Riverview Middle School, 205 Pacifica Ave., Bay Point CA 94565. Check donations, which will be used for homeless tutoring services, should be made out to the Mt. Diablo Unified School District, noting homeless and foster youths. Receipts available on request. Information is at 925-458-6858 or www.mdusd.k12.ca.us/hope.
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December 16th, 2008 at 9:19 pm
I am glad that local websites are pushing this message out. I know the MDUSD has it’s issues but this is a service most of us can get behind.
December 16th, 2008 at 9:41 pm
I saw a story on this on Channel 2. With the economy in the can, it’s great to see people that care about these kids.
December 16th, 2008 at 9:48 pm
I saw this on the news too. I got inspired after reading the story in the Times this afternoon. I don’t donate to many causes but this one makes a lot of sense.
Concord Blogger’s last blog post..Homeless Students MDUSD – How to help
December 18th, 2008 at 12:06 am
Hi, This is James Wogan from the MDUSD Homeless Outreach Program for Education (MDUSD HOPE). Thank you so much for posting this! The generosity I have witnessed has been amazing – and very helpful to our homeless children and foster youth! We have received donations from teachers, parents, school social workers and psychologists, community members, MDUSD board members, every department at the district office, members of our TIS department, ground crews, maintenance and custodians, bus drivers, secretaries and classified staff, principals and school administrators, and students themselves.
It’s rewarding to see so many people from different backgrounds coming together to help some of our most vulnerable students. Someone forwarded an email I sent out requesting donations – that resulted in a friend from Canada donating $200! A special education teacher saw the MDUSD blog (http://www.mdusd.blogspot.com) and gave HOPE $60 worth of gift cards at a board meeting. A teacher at Riverview Middle School inspired the staff and collected twenty (20) Target gift cards! The staff at Westwood Elementary School gave MDUSD HOPE a stack of gift cards this afternoon! The list of outpouring and generosity goes on, but there is one story I would like to share (if I can write this much on a blog): A woman called today and offered her home to Savannah and her grandmother (from the CC Times article) while she is on vacation in the beginning of January!
Donated gift cards have been incredibly valuable because families can purchase items they need, and parents can pick out toys for their children. Some parents would otherwise miss out on what it feels like to shop for their children. We write in sharpie on each gift card “no alcohol / no tobacco.” Because Mt. Diablo Unified is a public agency, checks made out to MDUSD can not be used to purchase items that would be considered a “gift to the public.” We use donations made out to MDUSD to fund individual tutoring for homeless students. Donations made out only to “HOPE” (a separate donation account we recently opened) will be used to buy eye glasses for three students (we exceeded our limits for free glasses with three companies), pay for a mother’s medication, and cover one month of storage for a homeless family to store their belongings until they are back on their feet again.
There is a saying in Japanese, if I am saying it correctly: “Chisai Koto wa Oki.” It means “Little things are big.” I have found that little things, like words of encouragement from a teacher, a gift card for a parent to be able to shop for his/her child, and knowing that people care, goes a long way! Thank you Koka Sexton and everyone who is doing something, big or small, to help some of our most vulnerable children!
Yours truly,
James Wogan, LCSW, Administrator, School Linked Services
Mt. Diablo Unified School District
Homeless Outreach Program for Education (MDUSD HOPE)
Foster Youth Services (MDUSD FYS)
205 Pacifica Ave. Bay Point, California 94565
Tel: (925) 458-6858, Email: woganj@mdusd.k12.ca.us
http://www.mdusd.k12.ca.us/hope / http://www.mdusd.k12.ca.us/fosteryouth
December 18th, 2008 at 10:41 am
James, thank you for the comment and what you are doing for the kids in our community. It makes me happy that so many people from so many different backgrounds are willing to help. Times are hard for many people but we have to remember that there are those less fortunate than us and we should do something extra for them.
I will do what I can to spread the word about your program.
Concord Blogger’s last blog post..2009 ‘Not So Golden’ Globe Nominations
December 18th, 2008 at 6:06 pm
Thank you for posting about this. I know a family that has become homeless and has 2 kids in the MDUSD. Anything that people can do to help is very appreciated.