BSU is currently sponsoring a clothing drive to benefit foster children in northern Indiana. All students, faculty and staff are asked to donate gently-used clothing to the campus Intercultural Center (across the street from the Administration Building) by November 21st.
The clothing is being given to KidsPeace, which is, according to their website, “a private charity dedicated to serving the behavioral and mental health needs of children, preadolescents and teens.” Their mission is “to give hope, help and healing to children facing crisis.”
Indiana’s KidsPeace locations provide therapeutic foster care for individuals from birth to 21 years of age. As a result, clothing of all sizes is being collected, with an emphasis on garments for children and adolescents.
The clothing drive was conceived of by the current BSU executive board. “Unfortunately, through the years BSU has been known mostly for its parties and social gatherings,“ said John ‘J Bird’ Sams, MC junior and president of BSU. “We wanted to do something active to really help out those people who are in need.”
The decisions regarding what kind of fundraising to do or donation to make and whom to give the donations to were made very carefully. “When you’re dealing with money, things can get corrupt,” Sams said. “Clothes are just clothes. They’re not going to a corporation—they’re going right to the people who need them most.”
This was an important point to Jordan Tyson, MC junior and BSU’s vice-president. “We chose KidsPeace over Goodwill because Goodwill sells the clothes, rather than giving them away, and we could never be sure whether or not the clothing went to someone who was truly in need,” he said. “We wanted to be sure the clothing went to the people that would be most helped by them.”
Sams emphasized the significance of the donations going to foster children. “We wanted our focus to be on children, who can’t really do much to help themselves,” he said. “Sometimes they don’t even have good foster parents.”
This is not a problem that is far removed from life at Manchester College. There is an MC student (who asked to remain anonymous) who has been through foster care and has directly benefitted from the donations of a charity similar to KidsPeace. “I remember when I went to a foster home the first time, all I had were the clothes on my back,” she said. “These programs help foster kids not only with clothing but also with a sense of style and joy that they often need.”
This student hopes that many members of the MC community will decide to donate some of their clothing to KidsPeace. “Programs such as the ones BSU is working for help to make foster children's lives a bit less stressful, and make the child feel welcome when they are scared of the new environment,” she said. “Foster homes are often a scary thing for someone to experience.”
Participation in an event such as the clothing drive also serves to strengthen the sense of community here at MC. “In order to respect people as a whole, you need to unite with those who have it rougher than you,” Sams said. “You need to be willing to go outside your comfort zone and make some sacrifices.”
Tyson agreed. “BSU is here to unite people, at least as far as respect goes: you need to respect those who are different from you,” he said. “And to come together for a common goal is one way of uniting. Whether or not we like each other, let’s come together and show respect for each other so we can meet a common goal of helping people out.” The clothing drive offers the MC community with a chance to do exactly that.
There will be a second clothing drive sponsored by BSU to be held during the spring semester.
(This article originally appeared in the November 8, 2008 edition of The Oak Leaves.)
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