When disasters happen, people often lose everything they have. A mother may not have the things she needs to take good care of her baby. A child may not have a pencil or paper for school. Families may not even have toothbrushes, soap or combs. When it's time to clean up after a flood or an earthquake, there may not be any cleaning supplies.
You and your friends can make a difference by making Gift of the Heart kits. School Kits and Hygiene Kits are often the most in demand.
School Kits
What's in your backpack for a new school year? Notebooks? Paper? Folders with superheroes on the cover? Many kids both here and around the world don't have much of anything to take to school. School kits give these kids what they need to start the school year off right.
Pack everything inside the cloth bag.
Hygiene Kit
Most kids have a nightly routine before they go to bed at night. They wash up, brush their teeth and put on their pajamas before turning off the light. In the morning, they may take a shower, brush their teeth again, comb their hair and get dressed. Now imagine you have had to leave your home with your family because of a flood, a fire or a war. Maybe there's no time to gather up the things you need. Hygiene kits give families the things they need to stay clean.
Please do not add toothpaste to the Hygiene Kit. Toothpaste that has an extended expiration date will be added to Hygiene Kit shipments just prior to shipment. Seal all items in the plastic bag.
Value: $11
Processing/Shipping Cost: $2 per Kit
Baby Kit
Most mothers really want to take good care of their babies. But in some parts of the world, mothers simply don't have what they need to keep their babies clean, dry and warm. Baby kits help mothers to do just that.
All items should be new. Wrap items inside one of the receiving blankets and secure with both diaper pins (patterns are available for many of the Baby Kit components).
Note: Many people in the United States do not use cloth diapers. But in other parts of the world, mothers use cloth diapers on their babies. You can buy 12-packs of cloth diapers at Target and at many Sears stores or you may be purchas them online at one of the following Web sites: Cotton Babies; ClothDiaper.com; BabyBestBuy; or Thanks Mama
Emergency Clean-up Bucket
Think about how you feel if your room is really messy and you need to clean it. Now imagine how people feel when they are faced with the really big mess a flood, hurricane, tornado or other disaster leaves. Homes, churches, stores and schools may be covered with debris or filled with nasty-smelling mud. Clean-up buckets give people here in the United States the supplies they need to begin the job of cleaning up.
Please buy all liquids in plastic bottles. Send only new, unopened materials. Carefully pack everything in the plastic bucket so nothing gets damaged during shipment. Seal the lid of the bucket lid with packing tape. Then place each bucket in a separate box.
Packing and Sending "Gift of the Heart" Kits
Tape the boxes closed with packing tape.
Ship all Kits prepaid to one of the following:
Church World Service
Brethren Service Center Annex
601 Main Street
New Windsor, MD 21776-0188
(410) 635-8794
Ferncliff Disaster Assistance Center
Attn: David Gill
1720 Ferncliff Road
Little Rock, AR 72223
(501) 821-3063 or (866) 732-6121
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