MILLSBORO, Del. – Clothing Our Kids, a local nonprofit organization founded 12 years ago in Sussex County, says it has been helping more children due to a rise in poverty in the area.
Bob Blouin has been with the charity for the past 10 years. The nonprofit takes orders for clothes from local schools with students in need, but Blouin says this is the first school year where orders come in before classes even start.
“We had orders starting in July and August, people ordering clothes for children, and we’re taking orders now, not just from the schools, but also from social services and the family shelters,” Blouin said.
During September, Clothing Our Kids provided clothes to more than 1,100 kids in Sussex County.
“It’s an honor that we can partner with the families in the community and that they feel safe and secure enough to come and share their and express their needs,” Lori Boyce, a second and third-grade counselor at East Millsboro Elementary School, said.
The charity has 120 volunteers who shop for new clothes, prepare the orders placed by teachers, nurses, and counselors, and then deliver them to the school.
“We can give the children the resources, this being the clothes, necessary to have a positive attitude going to school, to have a positive attitude by staying in school. If they have soiled clothes or if they have to wear the same clothes every day, there’s more chance of them being bullied in school. We don’t want that to happen,” Blouin said.
If you know a child from Head Start, elementary, or middle school who needs new clothes, Clothing Our Kids urges you to contact the child’s school so they can put in the order.
To learn more about Clothing Our Kids, click here.