A Meeting member, volunteering at Eastern Service Workers Association, got a call from Ms. Tapia, the school secretary at Harrison Elementary School. She was actively seeking winter wear for students at the school who were coming to school in the freezing weather in sweaters and sweatshirts. She had been calling all around on this task. ESWA did not have any children's outer wear available save one jacket. So the Friend sent out the word of the need to the Trenton Quaker Community.
Within hours, hundreds of dollars were raised. Debi Richter was by far the most generous. Cathy Campbell and Charles Hardy did the shopping and more than 20 coats, a dozen or more hats and about 20 pairs of gloves were acquired. The shopping started in Pennsylvania where Charles was with his sister for the morning. Here she is holding the first set of items.
Cathy and Charles continued back in Jersey and delivered the items to the school on Friday afternoon, December 6.
Harrison School is in the Trenton Public School System and is located in Chambersburg on Genesee Street. It serves an area of hard working families of which 70 percent are Hispanic and about 30 percent have gone on to one year or more of post secondary education. Charles lived in Chambersburg a few years ago and knows it is a tight knit, hard working area.
Above we see Principal Dr. Keisha Gaymon, Secretary Lenore Tapia (the intrepid phoner), a staff member who's name I sadly don't remember, and Cathy Campbell - with a few of the coats.
Dr. Gaymon and all were very, very happy being given the opportunity to help at least a few of the students who did not have winter wear. Looking at other ways to serve the children and families in the school community, Dr. Gaymon mentioned that a way that Friends and friends could help for the holidays might be to donate toys or "adopt" a famliy to make it a merry Christmas for them with funds for gifts or holiday food.
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