Thanks to a matching grant from the Alterra Mountain Company Community Foundation, the Stratton Foundation’s $100,000 ‘Head-to-Toe’ program supported hundreds of children throughout the year with basic necessities. As parents struggle through rising inflation, long term effects of Covid and disruptions in work, the Stratton Foundation stepped up to make sure children had what they needed to grow and learn.
Beginning last August, the Foundation purchased items to fill backpacks with calculators, water bottles, pencils, paper, headphones and more to make sure that each child had what was requested of their families to begin the school year.
In the Fall, the Foundation braced for the long winter months ahead. Staff, volunteers and a network of 25 schools collected sizes for children ages 1.5 to 18 years old, so each received a new warm coat, snow pants, mittens, hat, boots and socks. Schools reported that even their youngest students were arriving off the bus, cold and unprepared for outside classroom time, while parents were requesting help with what they could not afford. Items were donated or purchased through partnerships with Operation Warm, Equipe Sport, the Stratton Mountain Resort, Kamik, North Face and Smartwool.
In February, the Foundation recognized National Children’s Dental Health Month and distributed 1,800 dental kits, complete with miniature sand timers, floss, toothpaste and toothbrushes, inspiring schools to show supplied dental videos and assign ‘healthy habits homework.’ With a shortage of dental supplies locally, the Foundation’s donors tapped into their hometowns in New York and Massachussettes, and we extend our gratitude to Springfield AHEC, Bonkowski Dental, Dr. Robert Perrachia, Dr. Morris of Plainview Oral Surgery, Dr. Elisa Mello, and Dr. David Jurman of Leading Edge Oral Surgery, for their generous contributions. According to one school, ‘I had multiple kids say they had never been given a new toothbrush before coming to school and getting them here,’ and another reported that their elementary school of 60 children does not teach health.’
In Spring, the Foundation provided more than 600 children with a new pair of sneakers and socks. From Arlington to Danby, throughout the Shires, over the mountain to Londonderry and east to Newfane, children across the Stratton Foundation’s footprint were cared for. Too often, children must wear sneakers that are too big, too small, or duct taped together to extend their wear, providing a visual reminder of what little funds are leftover in a family’s budget to purchase necessities. The Foundation’s partnership with Shoes that Fit and Bombas gives access to new name-brand sneakers, with a shared mission to overcome the stigma for some and provide for all.
“You all are doing such amazing work. I can not thank you enough from all my students and families. Every program you do has direct benefits to the children,” is the message that the Foundation shares with all of its partners, donors, and volunteers who make a difference in the lives of those who need it most. The Foundation also thanks the schools and teachers who care so deeply beyond education. A child without basic necessities is a child in crisis, and the Stratton Community Foundation strives to overcome the interlinking challenges that stand in the way of healthy, happy, safe, and educated kids across southern Vermont..
To learn more about Head-to-Toe or to donate, visit Strattonfoundation.org https://strattonfoundation.org/head-to-toe