I have participated in several events supporting Aurora Warms the Night over the past few years. This is a local organization that supports the homeless population through food donations, clothing donations, hygiene items, and hotel vouchers when the weather reaches dangerous temperatures. I have previously participated in making food donation kits and hygiene kits for women through this organization but have never organized a donation drive for them on my own.
I contacted the volunteer coordinator for Aurora Warms the Night, Brian Arnold, and asked him about the current greatest need for the organization. He shared with me that there is currently a great need for new socks and underwear for the homeless population as they have difficulty washing clothing. Thus, I identified my project as attempting to help them meet this need.
I began collecting items in August and hosted an event at my home on September 9th to support my project. I called it a “Crazy Sock Party” and offered a prize for the person wearing the craziest socks. I provided refreshments, collected donations, and awarded a $20 amazon gift card to the winner of the crazy socks contest. I collected items from eleven people (Lisa Roth, Michele Broswick, Nikki Love, Janet Dorny, Paul LeHardy, Bethany Melnick, Jamie Meitchen-Ojeda, Dyan Stevens, Kerrie Shulman, Valerie Schowinsky, and Alaina Young) in addition to items I contributed. I collected 89 pair of underwear and 131 pairs of socks to donate to Aurora Warms the Night. I delivered these items to Brian Arnold’s home on October 6th, 2017. Here are a few photos of the event and of the final donation items. Thank you to all who helped make this project successful!
