By AMY BARNES
Special to the Daily Planet
Our Girl Scout troop 2119 started with a simple idea — blessings bags.
These are typically gallon-size Ziploc bags with snacks, sample size toiletries and other small items. The idea is that the girls would make these bags and pass them out to homeless people they see in Asheville. Out by the airport and near the Asheville Mall, there are many people panhandling. The girls could pass out their blessings bags as they see panhandlers on the side of the road.
We started doing research about homelessness and the success of blessings bags. That research brought us to Ferrin Cole and Elena Huggins at AVL City Care. AVL City Care acts as a bridge to organizations to help them get the items they need. AVL City Care had taken up a collection of blankets, sleeping bags and coats for the homeless in Asheville. AVL City Care is a group I wanted to partner with. They gave us a big push in the right direction. Ferrin Cole referred me to Julie Brentise who volunteers and helps the homeless people of Asheville. Through Ferrin, Elena and Julie, we learned about the lack of CODE PURPLE's in our community this winter.
When a CODE PURPLE is called, homeless shelters and hospitals can surpass capacity limits in order to bring people inside and away from the elements. A CODE PURPLE is called on cold nights when sleeping outside would risk severe injury or freezing to death. Due to Covid-19, social distancing requirements and the need for masks, CODE PURPLE isn't being called and the number of people who can find shelter in bad weather and on cold nights is greatly reduced. This winter, more homeless people will find themselves sleeping outside and exposed to the elements.
Julie Brentise is a wealth of information on the local homeless population in Asheville. According to Julie, the Asheville community has blanket, coat and sleeping bags drives. When it comes to sleeping on the streets, sleeping bags are best, but hard to find. Blankets and coats are great, but there are other items that are often missed in collections for the homeless. She created a list of items that homeless people need, but are often not donated. These became the items we started collecting for our project, which we have named CODE WARMTH. Ferrin Cole and AVL City Care gave our troop 20 backpacks with some items to get us started with our collection. Our goal is to fill 20 backpacks with the items from Julie's list.
Here are the items that are most needed.:
Warmth Items:
Hats
Ski/Snow gloves and mittens
Wool/Thermal/Poly blend socks (Cotton socks trap sweat and don't retain heat)
Instant hand, body & toe warmers (at least 3 of each in each kit)
Yoga & camping mats (stops the floor or the ground from stealing your heat)
Rain ponchos & reflective blankets (helps to keep someone dry in cold, rainy and misty weather)
Grab & go snacks (digestion helps a body to create its own heat)
COVID-19 Hygiene Items:
Washable masks (Can't go inside and get warm anywhere without a mask)
Disposable masks (Can't go inside and get warm anywhere without a mask)
Disposable gloves (Helps to keep hands clean and dry)
Hand sanitizer
Anti-bacterial wipes
Hygiene Items: (Hygiene products can help women regain their dignity and identity)
Hair Brushes
Wide tooth combs
Lip balm
Deodorant
Body Wipes (The homeless don't have access to showers. Wipes are a great way to get clean!)
Feminine hygiene products (Maxi Pads, tampons and pantyliners are a nesecity, a luxury and a year round need)
Julie Brentise is our connection to BeLoved Asheville. BeLoved Asheville volunteers love visiting with friends on the streets and providing compassionate care. From Street Medics, to winter survival gear, to Street Pantries, BeLoved Asheville wants to be there when they are needed most. BeLoved Asheville actively goes out on cold nights and looks for people sleeping on the streets, exposed to the elements, and gives homeless people items to help keep them warm. Our Girl Scout troop will drop completed CODE WARMTH kits in the blessings box at AVL City Care. Julie Brentise will collect the kits and bring them to BeLoved Asheville for immediate distribution to homeless people in Asheville. Spare items will be put in BeLoved Asheville's free and self-serve pantries around Asheville.
Girl Scout Troop 2119 is asking our community for help. Our troop has set the goal of 20 complete CODE WARMTH kits for homeless women in Asheville. We would love to complete more kits and to inspire other Girl Scout troops to create CODE WARMTH kits as well. Kits can have new and gently used items in them. We have even created Amazon Registries to make shopping and shipping easy.
Troop 2119 would love to have others join in and make a good turn for the homeless in our area. Now, more than ever, many of us are just a paycheck or two from being homeless too. This is an opportunity to have an immediate and positive effect in someone's life. I think of it as sprinkling hope like confetti all over our community. At the completion of this project, we hope that the Juniors in our troop will earn their Bronze Awards and the Cadettes will earn their Silver Awards. These awards are the highest honors the girls can earn and are reserved for when Girl Scouts team up to make a difference in their community, learn important leadership skills, discover new passions, and watch how seemingly small actions make a big difference in their communities.
Amy Barnes
828.450.3756
