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Middle School Ambassador Rallies Clothing Drive for Impoverished Kids

From April 1-11 eighth grader Ella Parker and classmates will be collecting donated children's clothing and shoes for ages infant to 12 years old.

 

Ella Parker is forging ahead in her mission to gather shoes and clothes for kids who need them.

Swampscott's representative to the governor's Project 351 has rallied her middle school classmates to make signs and spread the word: "Please donate new and gently used clothing and shoes for children up to age 12."

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The Spring Greening clothing drive will run at the Swampscott Middle School from April 1st to April 11th.

Donors can drop shoes and clothes in a box in the school lobby.

Find out what's happening in Swampscottwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Ella and her helpers will sort donations and deliver them to Cradles to Crayons, a program that outfits children in poverty with essential items they need to thrive. 

Ella and her crew have been getting help from the school administration and Big Blue Bargains, the thrift store located at the back of the school.

Ella got her marching order through Project 351. Teachers nominated her to represent Swampscott in the program.

It's made up of students from towns and cities in the commonwealth, united by a desire to learn, lead and practice good deeds.

On Jan. 26, Ella went to a Youth Town Meeting at the State House in Boston before the kids headed out for a day of service projects. Governor Deval Patrick hosted the meeting and the ambassadors completed projects at various sites in Boston.

Ella helped paint a mural at the Hennigan Elementary School in Jamaica Plain. 

The school serves 583 students.  Project 351 ambassadors made take home math and literacy resource kits including flashcards, storybooks, and bookmarks for every student in the school. They helped reorganize and clean a storage room to be used as a book room and created literary-themed panel murals to line the main hallway of West Zone Early Learning, which serves 120 students in grades K-1.

Part of Ella's longer term responsibilities include promoting the clothing drive at Swampscott Middle School.

Her team has made posters, decorated donation boxes and put giant post-it notes around the school to spread the word about the drive and the needs of children in poverty.

If people want to help out by posting fliers to put up they can contact Ella at ella@parkersmail.com. 

 

Project 351, an independent nonprofit organization, promotes the values of kindness, compassion, commitment, humility, and generosity of spirit through the positive example of its ambassadors. An engaged community of partners from the private and nonprofit sector enable the mission of Project 351 and includes: Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, John Hancock Financial Services, 451 Marketing, Nordblom Properties, Pfizer, Bank of America, and RISO. Project 351 is also proud to join in this day of service with the New England Patriots and the Celtics Shamrock Foundation.


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