Handing out kits, all done!!

It's been several weeks, with some delays due to health and weather, but we were back on the hunt today, again at Caesar Chavez Park in downtown Sacramento. We hit pay dirt. All of the kits have now been handed out. In fact, we only hit about 2/3rds of the small park, because we ran out of kits!

I am overjoyed and overwhelmed with the positive reception of the kits. So many heart-felt "thank you"s and gratitude were expressed to us which I must pass along, as none of this would have been possible without so many generous donors. Thank YOU! Together we made a small difference in 60 people's lives... we shared not just goods, but human kindness and hope.

Here are some photos of Dan and me handing out the kits. We were working hard to only photograph the backs of the recipients, out of respect for their privacy.

Handing out kits, take one!

Today we headed out on foot in downtown Sacramento around K Street near the Capitol building with bags of kits on our shoulders.

Dan got a fist-bump of thanks.

Over in Caesar Chavez park...

We found a few people around.

By the end of the morning we had handed out about 20 kits. I theorize that the women's march happening nearby at the Capitol scattered many people who may have otherwise been in the area.

We drove around for a while but didn't find any other good candidate areas.

I'm going to hand out some during the week around my work (which is downtown) on my lunch. Then we'll go out again next weekend to hand out the rest!

Kit assembly

Here are some pics of assembling the kits.

Mom (Jean Kohlhoff) is working on the snacks...

 Dan is unloading the socks!

Peter (cat) is supervising the assembly process...

It took a while, but finally all done! 60 kits!

Kits!

So the final contents for these 60 kits are as follows:

Container (1):
- Drawstring bag with reflective stripe

Toiletries (11):
- Bar of soap
- Washcloth
- Toothbrush
- Toothpaste
- Floss picks (4-5)
- Deodorant
- Lotion
- Lip balm ("Chapstick")
- Comb
- Nail clippers
- Pack of tissues

Food items (3):
- Granola bar
- Peanuts
- Oreos

Other (2):
- Blanket
- Socks

17 wonderful items!

We'll be assembling this weekend and starting to hand out next weekend (Jan 12th or 13th) and continue on the subsequent weekend if necessary to hand them all out. [Ending up being under the weather that weekend, so we went out the following one!]

Pictures of the final assembled kit (minus the socks which haven't arrived yet):

All wrapped up:

And ready to go!

Making soap...

Making "guest size" soap bars and putting them in a plastic zip bag (so they can be stored and reused more than once, if desired). I'll put the washcloth in there as well when I package for the kits...

Blankets!

This is what 60 blankets looks like...

I have found cheaper ones, but the cheaper ones are also thinner.

I think for $4 (+ tax), it's a good value and decent blanket. I wish it were a little bigger, but it is nicely warm and very portable.

2018-2019 Project is underway!

I am using GoFundMe (https://www.gofundme.com/homeless-kits-project) to assist with fundraising this year. It has been immensely successful!

I am so incredibly touched by the generosity of so many people! I am truly blown away!

So, I am moving forward with making 60 kits with year! Many items I have ordered online (thank you Amazon.com) and are arriving over the next week to 10 days. Not everything is purchased yet, as I am still shopping around.

Today we're headed to IKEA to buy out their blankets. Hopefully they have 60 in stock!!

Success!

Today, Dan and I drove around downtown a while trying to find a small conglomeration of people, then decided to check out Caesar Chavez park.

Well, we hit pay dirt...

Before we knew it, word had spread and we had a line of people interested in receiving a kit and/or blanket.

After the line subsided, we walked through the rest of the park and into nearby streets to hand out the rest.

In all, 44 people received a kit and/or blanket (some wanted only one or the other).

I obtained the name of 38 of those people. These were the recipients: Lori, Robert, Laurie, Maria, Anthony, Tami, Tee, Jorjo, Marci, Rodney, Jimmy, Gregory, Hotenzia, Sheri, Tori, Tim, Mark, Ecka, Susan, Kenneth, Hoss, Anerae, Randy, Ray, Elitha, Gabe, Donald, John, Norman, Stephen, Jerred, Joey, Ronald, Lee, Terrance, Johnson, David, and Lisa.

We had no idea that in 45 minutes we would have been able to hand out all of the kits! So, this concludes the tale of the homeless supply kits. Perhaps until next year?

I cannot end this post without two special mentions:

My gratitude and thanks goes to DAN, without whom I would not have had the courage to do this. Thank you, my love.

Thank you to the 23 people who contributed to this project financially and through other means. The good this project brought into the world is because of you!