Holiday Help

I loved the weather this weekend.  It is hard to believe that it is November, but as I took Lexi for a walk today I had to smile as I saw a decent number of people in my neighborhood setting up Christmas lights.  The holiday is a time of joy for many people, but it can also be a time of significant stress for some families.

As we look ahead to the holiday season I wanted to make sure that you (or perhaps one of your friends) would be aware of some of the resources that could be available to help you.

School connected resources:

- One of the local churches, Worthington Presbyterian Church, is providing WKHS with all of the food for Thanksgiving meals so that we can distribute them to some of our families in need.  If you need help with a Thanksgiving meal, please contact me ASAP so that I can try to see if I can arrange for a meal for you.

- Community Cares Backpack Program: a group of dedicated, compassionate, and incredibly thoughtful Worthington mom's do a variety of things to help our school community through the Activity Club.  One of those programs is to provide bags of food that students can take home with them over the weekend to add a little extra to their family's food supplies.  Every other week we receive several bags that we can distribute.  If this resource is something that would be helpful for you, please let me know so that I can add you onto the list for future backpacks.  Please note that while this is provided by WKHS mom's, it is still confidential - they provide the backpacks to us and we distribute the bags to our students in need.

- WKHS Community Cares Closet:     The Activity Club also stocks a closet of toiletries and other items that any WKHS family in need can access.  There are a wide range of items available for you to take home with you including shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, soap, feminine hygeine products, lotion, deodorant, shaving cream, and more.  The closet is located in the Counseling Center and I am happy to show you where it is so that you can take whatever supplies you need.  Please note that if there are specific items you were searching for that might be out of stock when you stop by the community mom's are constantly refilling the closet and if you let me know what item you were hoping to access, I can make sure that they know it is currently out of stock and let you know once it has been added again.

Community Food Resources:

- Worthington Resource Pantry: www.worthingtonresourcepantry.org   614-985-1766     Located at 6700 Huntley Rd., Columbus, OH 43229, the Worthington Resource Pantry provides families in our community with food and other resources of support.  Their hours are Mondays 10 - 2, Wednesdays 3 - 7, and Saturdays from 10 - 12.  

-  Dublin Food Pantry: www.dublinfoodpantry.org     If you live in the 43016 zip code you could also utilize the Dublin Food Pantry.

-  Kroger Community Pantry:
     The Kroger Community Pantry is run in partnership with Mid-Ohio Food Bank.  The Kroger Community Pantry is located at 3960 Brookham Dr., Grove City.  Please check their website https://www.midohiofoodbank.org/get-help/ or call 614-317-9487 for information about hours and services.

-  Regular Monthly Meals:
     You may already know this because we have this resource is available year-round and is featured on the WKHS Counselor website, but several local churches provide meals to anyone in the community needing assistance.  This page highlights where and when these meals are available to families in need. 

I am fully aware that all needs are not just related to food/ toiletries.  Here are a few resources if you have additional needs.

-  Charity Newsies   http://www.charitynewsies.com/getting-help/
     Charity Newsies is an organization that provides clothing to students in need.  A parent/ legal guardian needs to arrange for the clothing to be provided, but they can provide a complete set of clothing needs for each student that qualifies and needs it.

-  Salvation Army:  Food and Toys
     Perhaps you have seen the red kettles that appear each year - these donations are used to help provide food and gifts for families in need.  Information about their Christmas assistance program is available here: http://co.salvationarmy.org/CentralOhio/christmas-assistance  Registration for assistance ends tomorrow, November 9th, at 1pm. (Sorry for the short notice.) Specific details about required documentation are available on the Salvation Army's website. If you have questions, you can contact them at 614-358-2622.

-  Hands On Central Ohio: http://handsoncentralohio.org    By phone: 211
     Hands on Central Ohio is an organization dedicated to connecting those in need with resources.  

-  Worthington Bridges

Worthington Bridges is the Worthington component of Neighborhood bridges.  This resource helps to link families in need with families who are willing and able to help provide needs.  I can help connect you to support requests from Worthington Bridges.  https://www.neighborhoodbridges.org/community/worthington-oh

-  2 Hands:  Specific Needs
     This online resource helps connect Ohio families in need with those who are willing and able to help.  Families indicate their specific needs on the website and then others volunteer to help meet those needs.  Information about this resource is available at: http://www.2hands.org/online-christmas-help/in-ohio.php

As always, please stop by and talk to me if you are having problems this holiday season.  If you need food, clothing or just want to talk about some struggles you are having, my door is open for you.  I hope you will be able to relax and enjoy this holiday season.