On the average, every day in Pinellas
county 250 kids wake up in the morning not knowing where they're
going to sleep that night; the average luggage for a child in foster
care is a Hefty garbage bag; many times a child is pulled
from their home
in the middle of the night for
safety reasons and expected to go to school the next day with no
supplies.
Pinellas County Council of PTA’s
believes “We can make a difference" by giving them something to
start anew with, something that’s theirs, and a hope that they know
someone cares. That is why PCCPTA President, Charles Derexson, has made the “2009 Backpack
Challenge.” The goal is to collect 2009 filled backpacks by
January 2009 (new deadline,) that’s an average of 20 per local unit.
We had a great start with 110 from Ridgecrest Elementary. Each red
backpack on this page represents 100 backpacks that have been
donated. Help us turn them all red.
Contact
Charles Derexson for more information or to donate backpacks.
Backpack Supplies
One Way
PTAs Can Help
Another Way to Help
(Teacher's Name = Charles Derexson)
Learn more by reading the St.
Petersburg Times article
"Class Project Helps Foster Kids"
