ECHO expects school supplies to be in high demand this year
Podcast Episode
To donate or volunteer
Donate: Items for the ECHO school supply drive can be donated at any Janesville location of the program's sponsors: McDonald's, Kmart, M&I Bank, Office Max, Rock-Green Realtors, Walgreens and Walmart. School supply lists are available at each location.
Monetary donations will be used to buy extra supplies. Checks made out to ECHO School Supply Fund can be mailed to ECHO, 65 S. High St., Janesville, 53548.
Volunteer: ECHO also needs volunteers to assemble supply packages and distribute them Friday, Aug. 21. To schedule a time to volunteer, call Fran at (608) 754-5333.
To apply for help
Janesville families in need of school supplies can register at the ECHO office, 65 S. High St., beginning Monday. They must qualify for low-income status and provide proof of residence to register.
Supplies will be distributed from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 21, at St. John Lutheran Church, 302 N. Parker Drive, Janesville.
JANESVILLE — Social worker Jessica Grandt-Turke has seen the look in parents' eyes as she hands them school supply lists for their children.
"You can just see the worry, see them thinking 'How can I afford this stuff?'" said Grandt-Turke, who works at Wilson Elementary.
The school has one of the highest low-income populations in the city. Last year, 95 percent of Wilson students qualified for free or reduced lunches. About 60 students were homeless.
As the new school year approaches, more parents could struggle to afford supplies, increasing the importance of donations to the annual drive held by Janesville's ECHO—Everyone Cooperating to Help Others. ECHO is a non-profit organization sponsored by the faith community and serving low-income people in the Janesville area.
Organizers expect more than 1,200 students to need supplies this year, up from 1,192 last year, said Cheryl Maveety, ECHO client advocate.
The group collects supply lists from every school and then creates a standard package, giving each student as many supplies as possible, she said. Crayons and pencils usually are donated in large numbers, but spiral notebooks, red pens and backpacks often are in short supply. Three-ring binders, highlighters and other supplies for older grades also are given in smaller numbers.
"Just seeing those little kids' faces light up when they get these packages, it's like a treasure chest to them," Maveety said. "What if you didn't have that because you had to use hand-me-downs or not have supplies at all? It would be such a sad little moment."
Donations already are being accepted at the organization's newest partner, McDonald's, and returning sponsors Kmart, M&I Banks, Office Max, Rock-Green Realtors, Walgreens and Walmart.
Basic supplies can make all the difference for a student from a struggling family, Grandt-Turke said. She remembers one young boy whose family couldn't afford to buy him a backpack.
"I pulled a bunch donated through ECHO and told him he could pick," she said. "You would have thought I was giving the kid a Wii, he was so surprised and kept saying he had never had a new backpack."
Jul 23, 2009 at 9:23 p.m.
Suggest removal
Placebo - really stop with teh walker links......
Jul 23, 2009 at 3:55 p.m.
Suggest removal
luvujvl..The Parker Closet is funded all thru donations. Contact Deri Wahlert at Parker. She is responsible for the Parker Closet
Jul 23, 2009 at 2:43 p.m.
Suggest removal
Maybe the joker can fund all of these needs; with his infinite billions of dollars and all of his multiple businesses.
Jul 23, 2009 at 1:58 p.m.
Suggest removal
parker_helper : Where does funding come from for the Parker Closet? How can we donate?
Jul 23, 2009 at 9:40 a.m.
Suggest removal
Just when I think I have it bad because I can't afford to go out to eat as much as usual, I read a post like this and it reminds me how lucky I am. I will be heading out to get some supplies to donate after work.
Jul 22, 2009 at 8:08 p.m.
Suggest removal
Everyone on these boards NEED to go and buy school supplies and drop them off at your school of choice.Make a difference in a childs life !!!
Jul 22, 2009 at 6:54 p.m.
Suggest removal
Tough times and going back to school are a trying combination. I try to make the adjustment easier on the kids, but sometimes it is hard. A friend recently sent me this short clip from Walker Texas Ranger and the message helps me get through the hard days. God Bless.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJ5w4MkFo...
Jul 22, 2009 at 12:24 p.m.
Suggest removal
That is how our tax dollars should be spent. When a child shows up for the first day of school they should recieve their package of school supplies. That way every child has what they need. I would not mind a raise in my taxes if went to program like this.
Jul 22, 2009 at 11:32 a.m.
Suggest removal
So janesvillean wake up and look into the world and not just janesville.
Jul 22, 2009 at 11:31 a.m.
Suggest removal
http://healthandsurvival.com/2008/01/29/.... Icould post a hundred websites but ill let you go to google and look for youself.
Jul 22, 2009 at 11:22 a.m.
Suggest removal
check out this sithttp://www.gadling.com/2007/07/05/what-countries-have-universal-health-care/e. I am very upset at all the money spent on the invasion. This cannot be taken back. But we all need to speak up and fight for universial healthcare.
Jul 22, 2009 at 11:05 a.m.
Suggest removal
IvoteIspeak, it isn't true. US assistance to Iraq in the first three years of occupation was some $20 billion, of which about 1% went to medical needs -- primarily supplies and rebuilding hospitals. That's about $200 million; by contrast the US Embassy in Baghdad cost $700 million. The UN has been increasing its aid as the US assistance effort winds down.
.
If you want to be upset, consider the $3 to $6 trillion overall cost of the invasion and occupation, money we could have easily spent elsewhere.
Jul 22, 2009 at 8:41 a.m.
Suggest removal
Where in the world did you see that Iraq and Afghanistan are getting health care courtesy of the US government? That doesn't even make sense. However, since when does anything the government do make sense?!?
Jul 22, 2009 at 12:58 a.m.
Suggest removal
janevillean: I think they corrected it; I swear it said "60 percent" earlier. Glad to see it isn't quite that dismal yet.
Jul 21, 2009 at 11:12 p.m.
Suggest removal
Not sixty percent, sixty (unless the article has been amended). But 95 percent -- which is twice or three times as much as when I was a student there -- qualify for assistance.
Jul 21, 2009 at 10:51 p.m.
Suggest removal
Is that figure correct? Sixty percent of Wilson School students are homeless??! That is very, very shocking and so very sad. How can we, as a community, best help lower that number?
Jul 21, 2009 at 7:36 p.m.
Suggest removal
For those that know students that attend Parker and are in need of school supplies, please talk to an Asst Principal or Guidance Counselor or Deri Wahlert (advisor) about being enrolled in the Parker Closet. All students that are in the Parker Closet will be getting all their school supplies for this upcoming school year. Just a helpful FYI...
Jul 21, 2009 at 7:07 p.m.
Suggest removal
It is great to see that some do care in America. I beleive that most dont care enough to realy help each other. I would also like to thank the government for not giving Americans the health care we deserve. THANK YOU! Is it true that Iraq and Afganistan have Universal Health Care paid for by the US tax payers money.
Before you post a comment, consider this:
Note: GazetteXtra.com does not condone or review every comment. Read more in our User Policy AgreementPost Comment
Commenting requires registration.