Hundreds of hats, gloves, and scarves collected by members of PTPI’s Brooklyn, New York (LMGHS) Student Chapter brought warmth to a cold holiday season for people without homes or living near or below the poverty level. Working with The River Fund, a non-profit that provides resources for homeless and underprivileged in the Coney Island area, chapter members distributed the items and also handed out the nearly 300 bags of holiday treats they had put together. The chapter plans to continue supporting fellow members of their community. Chapter President Stefanie Allman tells us why and how:
1. What motivated you to choose this community service project?
Our chapter has always worked to help our local and global communities but we were consistently frustrated that we never saw the people we were helping. Partnering with The River Fund enabled us to make that personal contact. The project fully engaged all chapter members, and encouraged others to participate as well, by donating or joining in. Through word of mouth, signs, posters, and announcements on the school loudspeaker, the donations poured in and we were able to create a full assembly line to sort through the items. Simultaneously, we had an assembly line packaging goody bags of donated candy, toys, and festive holiday trinkets to give to the homeless boys and girls. This helped to brighten their holiday season!
2. Did the experience teach you anything?
This project and our involvement with PTPI has helped us all become aware that the basic needs of food, clothing, and shelter are very real for many neighbors in our community. As a chapter, we knew that our small effort would help warm the hearts of many and would also spread awareness of the true meaning of giving.
3. Tell us about your upcoming projects:
Continuing our partnership with the The River Fund, we will celebrate Valentine’s Day with our “Hearts of Caring Campaign.” Loving poetry, messages of caring and kindness, and chocolate will be given to our neighbors in Coney Island. We also plan to collect stuffed animals that will be sent to children in hospitals in Israel. For Global Youth Service Day in April, we plan to do something for children in need in the community. Finally, we are becoming e-pals with a group of teens from a high school in India who have visited our school as exchange students for the past two years.
4. How are you working to encourage your fellow students to join the chapter?
We plan many other exciting events and let people know that it’s never too late to join our chapter. People are always welcome, even if they are not an official member, and encouraged to participate in our service projects. We make frequent announcements and schedule frequent meetings, to give people a chance to take part.
To learn more about People to People International, visit www.ptpi.org