I know we are all forever being asked to donate for this and help with that but here is a painless way to really help kids ! Coming from Southern California to Southern Alabama one of the biggest issues I had with Culture Shock was the educational sysyem. It is so poorly funded you would be blown away that this is really in America and in this time. My Grandchildren are going to the very same school thier mothers went to! Over the years we have fundraised to obtain air conditioners and equipment of all types, I remember many years that the kid's school supply list included Paper towels, cleaning materials, Kleenix and even Toilette paper ! Unfortunately the local Every year we purchase the construction paper, crayons, markers, pencils, rulers, lined paper, antiseptic gel, the bandaides , folders, index cards ... my family has always bought at a minimum double the requested supplies as there are so many kids who simply can not bring anything. Welfare in our area pays a family of one mom 2 kids under 400.00 a month. Food stamps are limited and medicaid is the only way a majority of the kids get any health care at all. Plus we are a uniform school so there is a specific uniform for each child. No variations allowed. It cost me between 275.00 and 350.00 per child to start school every year. At the end of each year any uniform that is not to be handed down in our own family is donated to the school to help another kid.
This year they broke ground on the new school !! IT will be AWESOME reall heat, real AC , no portables way over due and since Katrina hit our enrollment nearly doubled. They have funds for the building and the basic supplies but there is Zero in the budget for the playground and the landscaping...books are being worked on by families like my own.
Check your cabinets, chances are really good you already have the labels that will earn money !! There are literally HUNDREDs Box tops hamburger helpers , cereals , Old El Paso, Betty Crocker Huggies Ziplocs Hefty Look for the Pink and White box on the box top with a yellow school pencil each one is .10 cents to the school. UPC codes from Chunky soups , Pepperidgefarm Goldfish, and frozen breads Cambell's soup , Franco American Spagettios.... Swanson Broth the Upc lable from Nestle Pure Life Bottle water...
Anyone who has a chance and could stick an envelope in your kitchen, Mine is by the phone , and could pull these lables or clip the Box top coupon and mail it to me you would by that small act of kindness be helping many , many generations of school kids. It will cost you a moment or two , now and then if 50 of you clipped just 20 , that's a hundred bucks for the school !! over the course of the summer you might be really amazed at the amount of coupons , actual money for schools that you were unknowingly throwing out! Even if you don't send it to me, please take the time to clip them for a school in your area. PM me for my address , this is a small act of kindness, it'll cost a stamp or two and it helps children in our very own country !! How often do we get to do That ??? !! 
Bonita of Bwana