HOMEThe Miami Herald
KIDS GET HEAD START ON HELPING OUT OTHERS
June 10, 2001 Section: Neighbors WE Edition: Final Page: 2W
MICHAEL VASQUEZ, Herald Writer Memo: COUNTRY WALK
Illustration: photo: Students at Jack D. Gordon Elementary (A)Caption: AN EARLY BACK-TO-SCHOOL GIFT: Students at Jack D. Gordon Elementary sort through school supplies to put in backpacks for underprivileged kids. The project will go on through August.Summer vacation hasn't begun yet, but some Jack D. Gordon elementary students are already sorting out their back-to-school supplies. Well, not exactly their supplies.
The 250 members of Kids 4 Kids launched their 2001 Fill-A-Backpack campaign Monday. The goal: making sure every homeless or abused child in South Florida has the tools to learn. ``I really want to fill lots of book bags,'' said Shawn Carper, 11, a member of the group. Inside each book bag that Shawn fills will be notebooks, pencils and other items a child might need. The group aims to have 4,000 book bags stuffed by August. They rely entirely on donations from caring individuals and businesses. Kids 4 Kids is the brainchild of Beth Davis, a science teacher at Jack D. Gordon who became troubled by the amount of underprivileged students who showed up on the first day of school unprepared. Often these kids would be ridiculed by classmates and be branded as homeless for the rest of the year. ``Imagine being a high school student and having to bring your things to school in a Publix bag,'' Davis said. Convinced that with a helping hand these disheartened kids could succeed, Davis began the Fill-A-Backpack campaign in 1996. The experience of her grandfather served as a reminder of what a homeless person could become. Orphaned at age 6, he emigrated to the United States from Russia and survived on the streets of New York while working odd jobs. Through the kindness of strangers, he was able to get on his feet and went on to own his own business. ``No matter how bad you have it, there are people out there who care,'' Davis said. What makes Kids 4 Kids special is that it is second- through fifth-graders who are doing the caring - and making a difference. ``It makes me feel pretty good because I know I'm helping somebody in need,'' Timothy Carter, 11, said. Timothy is one of the group members who travels in a van from shelter to shelter passing out the book bags to homeless children. In the August heat the volunteers are often covered in sweat. Last year they were drenched by thunderstorms. But there's nothing quite like seeing 4,000 faces wear ear-to-ear smiles. ``It's the first time they have something new that's theirs,'' Davis said. ``They're going shopping and it's not costing them anything.'' The needy children get to pick out the backpack they want, and they also get to choose a new book to read - anything from Dr. Seuss to Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul. Most of the supplies go to homeless children, but a sizable portion are also distributed to abused or migrant children as well as kids living in area foster homes. If Kids 4 Kids meets this year's fundraising goal, every homeless public school student in Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties will start school with nothing to be ashamed of. ``I just think it's wonderful that these kids here learning about community service at such an early age,'' said Virginia Tomlinson of American General-Valic, one of Kids 4 Kids signature sponsors. Lynne Cameron of WFOR-CBS 4 Neighbors 4 Neighbors, another signature sponsor, agreed: ``These are the kids that will lead South Florida.'' They are learning to be leaders in their own homes as well. Sharon Carper has two sons who are members of Kids 4 Kids. Last year, when Carper battled against breast cancer, her 8-year-old son Dillon was a constant pillar of support. He made her gifts and did everything he could to cheer her up. ``When they do things for others, it makes them feel good,'' Carper said of her boys. ``And they're happy with that.''