Blog

When summer comes to a close, the world seems to move back into its regular routine. It’s a never-ending cycle that we experience every year. Families are finished with their vacations and settle back into the flow of jobs and chauffeuring children to after school activities.

As a child, I would attend camp for a couple weeks at a time. When I was in high school, I would literally travel across the country to work at camp. Even during college, I would spend my summers as a camp counselor playing games, eating less-than-haute cuisine, and helping kids to not feel homesick. Early in my career, I even had the opportunity to organize and lead camping programs.

At eight years of age, Dontae and his mother were homeless and living at a local shelter. Despite their circumstances, Dontae’s mother tried to remain positive and do what she could to help her son excel. Like any mother, she wanted the absolute best for her child.

The Christmas season is very busy time for us. You see our Red Kettles on street corners and at shopping centers; coordinating that aspect of what we do is a huge undertaking. But, it's also when we tend to see the greatest number of people needing help. We're so grateful for the volunteers and others that give and serve relentlessly to meet that need!

The notion of childhood has changed greatly over the past number of years. In the past, children would spend hours outside after school, exploring, learning, and building friendships. Today, it seems that so many kids are preoccupied – their heads buried in their phones. Rather than exploring the great outdoors, they spend their time lost in the fantasy world of video games.

Keyvon is a fun-loving eleven year old jokester who loves to make people smile. Unlike most children his age, he likes to keep everything neat and tidy. He even maintains a to-do list for all of the things he wants to complete each day. Watching him with his friends, he seems like a typical, carefree kid. You would never know that his home life is anything but typical.

The Jim and Cheryl Caldwell Foundation, Chris Paul’s CP3 Foundation and The Salvation Army proudly dedicated the grand opening of a new computer lab and learning center called the “Project Phoenix Learning Center” on January 22. Although Jim Caldwell and Chris Paul were unable to attend the ribbon cutting ceremony due to scheduling conflicts, each of their family was on hand.