Pictured: Contributed photo of $65 worth of donations for the Help the Homeless Hygiene Drive
The 25th annual “Help for the Homeless” hygiene drive is now again collecting items of need, like various toiletries, for the homeless.
June Sawall of the Waupaca County Salvation Army in New London says they will be one of the 89 agencies assisting this year, and they’re looking for any kind of day-to-day hygiene items that people sometimes take for granted.
“Everything we collect we can then distribute to the people and then money doesn’t have to go buy that stuff because it has already been donated,” Sawall explained. “Basically just deodorant and hygiene products. It doesn’t only help the homeless, but it helps people of low-income. If I can supply them with those items, then they have money for food.”
Although the effort is the culmination of numerous agencies, Sawall assures items donated stay within the community, stays within the community of New London and surrounding cities in Waupaca County.
“We get as much as the Salvation Army in Appleton, so then we actually are getting more than what we could have accumulated just doing it ourselves in New London,” said Sawall. “We cover all of Waupaca County, like if somebody from Clintonville comes, or Manawa, we help them also.”
Since 2008, over $2 million has been raised by various agencies in the area for their local crisis program, as the goal is to raise a year’s worth of products for each agency. The drive began on Sunday, Feb. 19 and continues through March 12.
We’ll have more about the drive, including one of the coordinators, Heidi Prahl, who will be out featured Community Helper on Friday.
