Description: Young adults work with their church to provide school supplies to families in need at a time when other organizations are not as focused on that particular need.
Get Ready
- Prep Time: Begin planning and advertising three to four weeks in advance of the day you will be collecting funds.
- Volunteers Needed: One person needs to be the central volunteer to consolidate and manage the donations. At least two people are needed to collect funds at Mass and answer any questions. Additionally you will need two people to purchase the school supplies with the funds collected.
- Supplies: The only supplies you will need are something to store funds in (an envelope or small container) and something to keep track of the funds collected to purchase the supplies.
- Reserve the Space: You will want to reserve a table for after Mass if the collection cannot be done through a second collection during Mass. You will also need a room to sort the supplies and prepare the supply packages once supplies have been purchased, as well as a room for the distribution day.
- Ideal Group Size: Five to 15 volunteers (or more) depending on the size of the community and how many supply packages you will distribute.
- Who is this for? Any young adults.
- When is a good time for this? Weekends. If you are working with another organization for distribution of the supplies, then you will need to work with their timing.
- Publicize the Program:
- Publicize in the bulletin in advance so people will know that you will be collecting funds for school supplies.
- Be straightforward about the purpose and the reality. While there are a lot of supply drives at the end of summer, kids also need supplies during the spring semester.
- Make sure there is an announcement at least one Sunday prior to distribution.
Prayer for Program Planner: Dear God, thank you for providing us with these many gifts. Help us as we share these gifts with others who are in need of them. In your name, we pray. Amen.
Community Building: The time when the group is gathered to organize the school supplies is perfect for community building. Providing prayer time, social time, and/or directed conversation helps them to get to know one another while serving together. (See some suggestions in the Ideas section.)
