<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2i1ohi_0wDQu91I00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2i1ohi_0wDQu91I00" width="600" height="600" >VERMILION — Students that might need help finding basic essentials will soon have a permanent location to turn to help.The Kiwanis Club of Vermilion has found a new home for its Kiwanis Kloset, a place to house its supply of clothing they offer free to children in need. “We had no idea the extent of the need in this community,” said Sherri Tarpchinoff Bennett, who oversees the program for the group.Kiwanis Kloset is the first project the group took on after it first formed in March 2020, just before the pandemic changed how communities interacted. Kiwanis are dedicated to doing good in their communities, and being unable to meet as a group, plan events or do any meaningful fund raising led to a slow start, she said.But the Kiwanis soon learned that Sailorway Middle School, which serves kids in fourth through eighth grades, had lost its emergency supply of backup clothes due to a flood in the basement.That started the idea of Kiwanis Kloset, she said. The school kept a small amount of clothes — socks and pants, mostly — for kids who had an accident, a muddy fall on the playground, or even a financial need. The group saw this as a need it could fill. It started first with the school’s lost and found, which was overflowing with left-behind sweatshirts, hoodies, hats and coats of all kinds. Items were kept for a while and even displayed at events when parents attended the school, giving families time to redeem the items.The Kiwanis split up all the unclaimed items, took them home to launder, and brought them back to school. For the past two years the district sponsors a back-to-school event on campus, inviting families and students to attend for a host of activities, and the Kiwanis attended to offer “free shopping.”“We didn’t look at income or anything like that, we just called it ‘free shopping’ to make it fun,” she said. “So many parents came back the second year and told us it was a lifesaver.”A call was put out for donations of gently used or new clothing for school-aged kids, and the collection of offerings grew. But soon it needed to find a new space, and began looking for a new — free — place to set up shop.Trinity Lutheran Church stepped up to help. It offered the Kiwanis Kloset a space and the hope it can expand its services.“We have more space, and now we can have events at our pleasure,” Bennett said.The group is setting up the Kiwanis Kloset now, and want to offer “free shopping days” and fun children’s activities in the future.Bennett said the first event being planned will be in conjunction with Trinity’s annual Christmas market, which also offers visitors a chance to pick up some free Christmas decor. Trinity also hosts Grace’s Kitchen, offering free hot meals, and organizers are considering ways to combine opening the Kloset during those times.Items are free to any child in Vermilion or Vermilion and Brownhelm townships, and the Kloset stocks things for students of school age, Bennett said. She also hopes to keep an essentials pantry as well, with shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, feminine hygiene products and other basic items on hand as well.Donations of gently used or new items and hygiene items are gladly accepted. They can be dropped off at Trinity Lutheran Church, 3747 Liberty Ave., in a big brown box by the entrance, or at Main Street Threads, 666 Main St. For large donations or for pick up, or for clothing assistance, email kiwanisclubvermilion@gmail.com or message through the group’s Facebook page, Kiwanis Club of Vermilion, Ohio.Contact Rini Jeffers at rinijeffers@gmail.com.</div></body>

Mountain View, CA

NewsBreak

Kiwanis Club of Vermilion sets up its clothing closet at Trinity Lutheran Church

VERMILION — Students that might need help finding basic essentials will soon have a permanent location to turn to help. The Kiwanis Club of Vermilion has found a new home for its Kiwanis Kloset, a place to house its supply of clothing they offer free to children in need.