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Polk County is giving reusable gift bags to its homeless population.
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Polk County, Florida is giving back to its homeless community by offering them a Christmas present to remember. Resident Katie Newman told Polk County Itemizer-Observer that she discussed an idea to help those without permanent accommodation with her husband, Dustin Newman, a sergeant with the Polk County Sheriff's Office during Thanksgiving. It involved taking reusable grocery bags, made from cotton and then transforming them into gift bags by filling them with items such as gloves, hats, socks, snacks and other small, yet useful items. These could then be given to those living on in the street just before Christmas. As a former probation worker, Ms Newman said that she had plenty of contact with the county's homeless population, but much of this was negative. However, after leaving her post and becoming a Christian she claimed "god has completely changed my heart for the homeless". Ms Newman will be in charge of collecting the bags from kind contributors, with the sheriff's office then tasked with distributing them to the homeless community. Members of local churches and community volunteers are now donating reusable grocery bags to the project, with cash gifts used to pay for presents to fill them. The idea of the bags is that they are portable and durable, designed to be carried around easily in all weathers. This means that blankets and jackets would not fit inside in most cases. However, the donation of smaller items is meant to help provide the gifts often overlooked by other projects. The Union Gospel Mission in downtown Salem is beginning to inform people who may need a care kit where to go on December 23rd and 24th, with any leftover gift bags being donated to the centre afterwards. We offer a wide range of environmentally friendly options from paper bags to our customisable cotton bags. Please don’t hesitate to contact us today to find out more. |
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