published: Wednesday, March 06, 2013

Clothing collected for the neediest students

By CHRISTOPHER TUFFLEY

christopher.tuffley@newssun.com

SEBRING -- Marcia Davis, coordinator for student services with The School Board of Highlands County, is looking for help.

She says homeless children are at risk in this weather as too many have no warm clothing. In, fact, she said, too many children don't have clothes at all.

"The economy is terrible, and children grow so quickly, there is a real need. A boy came to school without a jacket the other day. Children should be warm when they come to school."

The school district won a three-year federal grant meant to help homeless children, only it has conditions that limit what the school board can do, Davis said. For example, none of the federal money may be used to buy clothes, with one exception -- school uniforms.

Which is why Davis is looking for donations of children's clothing in all sizes. New clothes would be nice, she said, but clean, used clothing, without holes or worn out, is welcome.

Adult clothing also is necessary for middle and high school teenagers.

Highlands County has its share of the homeless, Davis said. By the end of the 2011-2012 school year there were approximately 400 homeless children attending public schools.

Davis emphasized, however, homeless does not necessarily mean the children are sleeping in cars, or under a bridge. The term includes families and individuals doubled up in homes.

The point, Davis said, is that children living in uncertain, anxiety producing settings shouldn't have to worry about having clothes that fit too.

Clothing (or cash) donations are accepted at the school board's administration center on School Street in Sebring. Davis is in the Ken Grady Building, the second brick building to the left of the main entrance.

For more information on how to help, call Davis at 471-8546.