Hope and the feeling of not being alone in the world, that’s the difference your donation can make to a child in need. For displaced children right here in Georgia, those feelings can sometimes be in short supply, and your help can be the one gesture that reminds them hope and community still exist, even when things seem at their darkest.

While no single donation, no matter how generous, can solve everyone’s problems, the more we work together to ensure our kids have what they need to survive and thrive—the more we embrace the spirit of giving as central to our success as a country and a society—the better we become, together. It all starts with small acts, and your donation to Adventurebags.org is a great place to start. Let’s take a look at some of the reasons why.

Why Your Help is Needed

Children can be displaced for any number of reasons, and those reasons are seldom good or pleasant to consider. But that’s why is so important we don’t turn a blind eye.

• Natural disasters can uproot entire communities, leaving children and their families with no safe place to live through no fault of their own.
• A sudden death, illness, or permanent injury in one or both of a child’s primary caregivers can make it necessary to place them in a new home, unsure whether or when they’ll be able to return.
• In some cases, children are victims of abuse or neglect, making their living environment unsafe or unhealthy.

It seems like a lot. But when many people do a little, a lot can be accomplished. All you have to do is play your small part.

A Good Place to Start

Solutions to the biggest problems we can imagine can sometimes be found by tackling the smallest initial obstacles those problems present.

A displaced child, having lost everything they know as familiar, needs something to call their own—something they can carry with them wherever they go. They need an Adventure Bag with basic hygiene products and creature comforts like warm blankets and clean socks. They need a little fun and joy in the form of toys and games, or anything to help occupy their mind. They need a sense that someone cares what happened to them, and the simple act of packing them a bag can do just that.

Adventurebags.org partners with the Department of Family and Children’s Services (DFCS); police and fire departments; domestic abuse and homeless shelters; and other organizations that work to protect vulnerable children in over 150 Georgia counties to provide Adventure Bags wherever they’re needed. Donating an Adventure Bag means your gift will be the first thing a vulnerable child receives at those initial points of contact.

Making a Donation to Adventurebags.org is Easy

Debbie Gori’s daughter was a social worker who shared a story about three children who had nothing but a trash bag to pack and carry all their worldly possessions as they were brought into the DFCS system for care. As a result, Gori founded Adventurebags.org in 2011 to begin to address the problem. Her organization has grown ever since and has distributed more than 15,000 bags to children in need in the last three years, alone.

At Canvas ETC, we’re lucky our business aligns with this wonderful organization. We were able to make a donation of 95 canvas tote bags to help support Adventurebags.org’s 10^th Annual Debbie Gori Memorial Bike Ride. But there are a ton of ways you can help, too:

• Build a bag. Suggested items are listed on their website along with ways to get in touch and how to deliver your bag through the appropriate channels. Make sure to keep the items consistent with the age of the recipient by checking Adventure Bags’ suggestions for infants, toddlers, children aged 5-9, and tweens and teens.
• Adopt a bag. If you don’t have time to shop, you can adopt a pre-made bag for as little as $50. You can also add a personal message of encouragement for the recipient that will be included along with the standard useful items.
• Shop via Adventure Bags partnerships with Amazon and Kroger. A portion of all your purchases will be donated to Adventurebags.org.
• Check with your workplace to find out if they participate in employer match programs for charitable organizations. You’d be surprised how many do.
• Donate directly via Adventure Bags website (linked above), or by sending your donation to: The Wimberly Center, c/o Adventure Bags – 163 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Winder GA, 30680

Canvas ETC, Your Community

No matter what you’re able to give—your money, your skills, your time, or in our case, our products—everything you do helps. Donating isn’t just a tax write off or a nice thing to do, it helps people survive. When no one is forgotten, we have the chance to be our best selves. We aren’t there yet, not by a long shot, but the way we get there is to start small. Make a donation today!