Street Outreach & Wish List

Note:  The Donate button copied and pasted with the rest of Russell's message doesn't work in the body of this blog-entry, but you can visit our site to find one that does.

Being that the Board of Directors at their February 19, 2010 meeting placed high on their priority list our Street Outreach Program, I want to share with you what we have been providing these street kids in the form of survival supplies as these resources are available.

As listed on our website under donations:

Think about the number of homeless children walking the streets of our cities. They are facing the elements of street life every day and night, in every way. They are alone, afraid and hungry. Think about how you would feel if it were you, your child, or grandchild. Many of these youth attempt to survive living alone on the streets day to day. To assist them we provide them with the following resources when available:   Backpacks Bedrolls Drinks, pouches only Feminine hygiene products Gift Cards for fast food restaurants, in $5.00 denominations Hand Wipes, antibacterial Hooded Sweatshirts, (Medium & Large) Knit Hats Nonperishable food Items Shorts, (Medium and Large) Travel Size Hygiene Items Sleeping Bags Socks T-shirts Wallets to hold their identification Water Bottles We are asking you to join our Wish List and invest $5.00 a month to help us make a difference in the lives of these kids. Just $1.25 a week, that’s less than one medium latte, or a burger and fries. I know you are wondering how just $5.00 could make a difference, it can make an amazing difference if enough people like you are willing to make a small investment in these kids lives.   You can make your "Wish List" donation online by credit card , or by mail to:   Invisible Youth Network 940 Park Boulevard, Suite #334 San Diego, California 92101 c/o Russell T. Hartsaw     Many of these supplies can be accuulated throught special drives through churches, colleges and High Schools and of course merchant donations. We need to start assigning new volunteers to this program. I have a local merchant who is a friend of mine who has offered storage space if needed. And of course we always have the option of a self storage unit.

Russell T. Hartsaw
Founder & Chairman
Invisible Youth Network http://invisibleyouthnetwork.net/default.aspx

Street Children 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSH9jlFMnEI

Tell Me Whyhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ro6kaQEYe2I

Lamps, Lamps, and MORE Lamps!!!

Operation Lamp Post is doing very well!  I've just added a third way to get another lamp post in the park--which I'm hoping to have filled with 25 lamp posts before long.

After 25 lamp posts have been added, I'm going to switch habitats to a holiday-themed one.   Optimistically, I've already gone shopping for some really cool Halloween decorations and hope to have a Halloween-themed habitat up for Throw Rug and friends really soon!  

I will include the 25 lamp posts in that habitat as a celebration!


Although no more lamp posts will be added to the habitat after that, I hope that the kinds of outreach actions earning these lamp posts will continue!

Here are the three ways that lamp posts can be earned:

1. For every $100 total of donations sent to our headquarters.  This would be a total of donations, so it wouldn't all have to come from one person.
2. For every ten TLC packages sent to us.  It doesn't matter what size.  It can be a small package (like a large envelope filled with gift cards to national fast-food and/or store chains), or it could be anywhere from a small box to a huge crate of items listed on our wish list.  When a total of ten arrive at our headquarters, another one of the 25 lamp posts I have waiting in the wings will be placed in the park.
3. Finally, the newest way for another one of the lamp posts to make its appearance:  for every ten signatures to the petition that will be going to President Obama asking him to declare the second Saturday of every October to be Youth Outreach Day.  You can read more about this--as well as finding a link leading to the petition by going here. 

 There are times when Russell does extra-special things for the street kids in his area (San Diego, CA) such as organizing a cook-out in Balboa Park or taking them to a restaurant (generally, about ten kids at a time, give or take, re: going to a restaurant).

Passers-by will see this going on, stop by to ask questions, and will also get into the spirit of things.  They will offer to give Russell money to help with the mission, and Russell will ask them to give it directly to the kids, as they will know what they need the most.  

There are more kids who stay in seclusion than come out in the open at this time, and those kids who are more out in public view will buy food, personal care items, etc. to take to the ones in hiding.

These kinds of donations don't even arrive at our headquarters, and their amount can only be estimated, and I'll place one or more lamp posts to recognize those gifts using the estimates given to me by Russell.

As of this writing (a little after noon, Anderson, Indiana time, on October 22, 2009), 14 of the 25 lamp posts have already been placed in the park, and they're just beautiful!

I can hardly wait to collect all 25 and place them in a more cheerful scene!!!

To take a look at pictures of how the park looked with no lamp posts and how the park looks at the time of this writing, please click on these two links...

No Lamp Posts

Lamp Posts In Park At A Little After Noon On 10/22/09.