Feel Good Friday - Kids in Need Foundation

It’s that time of year when summer vacations are coming to an end and back-to-school plans are being made. What a great time to learn about the Kids in Need Foundation.

Founded in 1995 and headquartered in Roseville, Minnesota the Kids in Need Foundation (KINF) “works to create equitable learning spaces by distributing supplies and resources to teachers and students in underserved schools, where 70% or more of students qualify for free or reduced-cost meals through the National School Lunch Program (NSLP)”.

In a survey conducted with teachers across 35 states, KINF found that 62% of students arrived without the necessary supplies on their first day, 62% of students did not have access to the necessary supplies at home and 69% of students did not have second semester replacement supplies. This lack of supplies not only impacts students class preparedness and participation, it affects their confidence levels, self esteem and social engagement at school. That’s where KINF comes in.

There are several programs focused on advancing educational equity. If you want to Supply a Student with the essentials for school, you can organize a backpack build for your organization or community group. Teachers working in schools where 50% of students are eligible for NSLP can receive a semester’s worth of core school supplies through the Supply a Teacher program.

The Second Responder program provides supplies to teachers and students affected by natural disasters around the country, and the The Rural and Indigenous School Equity program supports learning resource needs for teachers and students in rural and indigenous communities. Finally, there is a National Network of Resources Centers that provides teachers the opportunity to 'shop' for school supplies at ZERO cost to them.

In 2024, KINF provided $100 million in resources to more than 5 million students and over 200,000 teachers in all 50 states and Washington D.C. You can learn more by visiting the impact section of their website.

If this has inspired you, there are many ways you can support the Kids in Need Foundation. Volunteer your time, organize a backpack build, make a monetary donation and amplify their work on social media. Follow KINF on Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn and subscribe to their YouTube channel.

Feel Good Friday - Family Giving Tree

It's Feel Good Friday and this week, I'm switching my focus away from politics and towards the spirit of giving, starting with Family Giving Tree!

Family Giving Tree (FGT) is the largest holiday gift and backpack donation program in California and they have been "bringing hope and joy to those in need" for 25 years!

According to FGT's website, despite the affluence of the Bay Area, "one of every four children here lives in poverty". What began as a San Jose State MBA project has grown into an organization with the mission to "fulfill the exact holiday wishes and provide backpacks filled with school supplies to those children in the most need in our communities while inspiring the values of kindness, philanthropy and volunteerism." Since their inception, FGT has served more than 1.2 million children and individuals throughout the greater Bay Area through their two main annual drives:

For the Holiday Wish Drive, FCT partners with schools, service agencies and nonprofits to get students exact wishes and work with drive leaders and people like all of us to get those wishes fulfilled. In 2015 they fulfilled "more than 72,000 holiday wishes, 85% of those being children's wishes." Watch this video to see just how happy the children are when they get their gifts.

If you're participating this year, gifts are due to the warehouse by December 12th and you still have until January 5th to make monetary donations to the 2016 Holiday Wish Drive.

There is also a Back-to-School Drive which was "launched in 1995 with the goal of closing the educational gap for in-need K-12 students. New backpacks full of essential, grade-appropriate school supplies are collected and delivered to Bay Area students." This event takes place during the summer so backpacks can be picked up and distributed in early August. "In 2016 the Family Giving Tree exceeded its goal of 37,000 backpacks".

To help FGT keep going for another 25 years and expand their services to more children, there are numerous ways you can get involved. Those of you in the Bay Area can lead a drive or deliver toys as an elf and people everywhere can support this group with a donation and some social media love by liking their Facebook page and following them on Twitter @FGTtweets.