INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — The Education Foundation of Indian River County recently received a grant of $5,000 from Grand Harbor Community Outreach to support the Sneaker Exchange Program.
The grant funds will be used to purchase socks and sneakers for more than 280 economically disadvantaged students. Each school year more than 2,000 Indian River County public school students benefit from this program.
The goal of the program is to keep children in need, in grades K-12thth, on a path of learning with renewed self-esteem. The sneakers allow the students to participate safely in all school activities.
The program is about meeting a child’s needs. But there is also an even deeper component to this service. More than 100 volunteers from the community give their time 55 times from September to May to help students at weekly Sneaker Exchanges.
The gift of their time to assist and mentor a child is invaluable. In less than an hour, children share their dreams, their ideas and their hopes for who and what they want to become.
The Sneaker Exchange program is funded entirely through private donations and grants. The funding from the Grand Harbor Community Outreach is essential to providing uninterrupted services to children in need.
The Grand Harbor Community Outreach is a non-profit organization that is wholly comprised of volunteers. This member-driven group of philanthropists focuses on addressing the unmet needs of groups and individuals in Indian River County. More than 30 charities benefit from the outreach of Grand Harbor Community Outreach.
GHCOP focus areas include living essentials (food, clothing, and shelter), health and family stability, education, children, senior care, and enrichment services. Last year over $280,000 was distributed to support local program services. Over the last decade more than $2 million has been awarded. It is also important to note that 100 percent of GHCOP member contributions are donated directly to deserving agencies like the Education Foundation of Indian River County.
The EF-IRC’s mission is to enrich and enhance educational opportunities for all students and teachers, both public and private, through effective fundraising and the efficient allocation of resources. To learn more: visit www.edfoundationirc.org , call (772) 564-0034 or email director@edfoundationirc.org.
To support the efforts of GHCOP contact: Doug and Susanne Sweeney, VP’s and Co-Chairs of Philanthropy, dmsweeny@aol.com.
