Hard work and staying focused pays off….
On behalf of the Trustees, it is a pleasure to announce Operation BackPack4Kids is now an American Red Cross partner. This partnership will allow BP4K access to the Red Cross emergency services network so that we can asses emergencies and disasters throughout North America and respond when we can.
This past week was move in week at Bowman Field!
BP4K is setting up shop and we are moving fast! Thanks to Jeff Fondy, our Director of Logistics, we have secured a climate controlled storage unit and operations room at Bowman Field Airport in Louisville, Kentucky. UPS Captain Jeff Daus offered this space in the War Birds Hanger located at the base of the ATC tower so that we could launch our efforts right here at home. We have purchased over 600 backpacks and are assembling 200 of them for immediate distribution when the time comes.
Bill and Stacie unloading the 600 backpacks.
Backpacks and more Backpacks
Stacie and Cassandra working hard to organize our new storage facility.
Jeff and Cassandra, making it happen!
How you fit into the puzzle…
From the moment BP4K launched almost one year ago, it required the support of many. You made it happen, and only you can continue the mission. Through the generosity of IPA pilots, the IPA Foundation, the UPS Benevity Cause, ALPA, ALPA pilots, and corporate donors, we are doing exactly what we said we would. Now we are going to do it at home. And we need volunteers. We need Moms and Dads, teenage kids, groups like the Boys and Girls Scouts, the Civil Air Patrol, church groups, you name it! We need people who are willing to assemble the packs, load the truck, drive the truck…
Feeling called to help? Awesome…. Contact Capt Tom Livesey volunteer@backpack4kids.onmicrosoft.com, our volunteer coordinator and let him know!
In Closing:
It was a hard and very long year. No one thought the conflict in the Ukraine would drag out like it has. Children all over Eastern Europe have had their lives completely turned upside down. It has been hard to watch. But because of people with caring hearts, we handed out over 4,000 backpacks, bought 4 generators, 2 medical transport coolers, a BabyPod, and thousands of dollars of clothing for mothers and children. We also provided funds for the transportation of 12,000lbs of food and baby supplies to the Ukraine and Poland. In the middle of it all, true leadership rose to the top and people with the skills needed to navigate a non profit start up… did just that. Operation BackPack4Kids is a vetted and trusted Nonprofit 501c3 corporation. The Board of Trustees and Advisors have done nothing short of a miracle, and for that we should thank them every chance possible.
Thank you everyone for all that you have done, and hopefully will continue to do. We are making a direct impact on the lives of children… one backpack at a time.
Sincerely,
William Vaughan
Founder, Executive Director