UIL Staff Participates in 2 Community Service Projects

By Kim Carmichael, Chief of Staff | Tuesday, February 07, 2012 11:09 AM

UIL staffers Chris Schmidt, Jessica Lane, Phyllis Broz, Susan Doherty and Stephanie Ramirez volunteer at the Coats for Kids drive.

Photo by Kim Carmichael

Through area-wide community service programs, the UIL staff has joined in initiatives to better the lives of underprivileged youth in Central Texas.

In August, the UIL connected with an Austin non-profit organization for their 2011 Back-to-School initiative. “Back-to-School” is an important community program that provides children living in poverty with one backpack, a set of school supplies, books and two new sets of clothing. The program helps children feel confident and creates positive experiences at the beginning of school to promote academic success.

This summer, UIL discovered the organization’s greatest need in its “Back-to-School” initiative was backpacks. In less than one week, the UIL staff collected almost 60 backpacks and delivered them to children in need. This contribution allowed the organization to assist almost 2,000 children.

In December 2011, the UIL staff again took part in a community service project benefitting underprivileged children in the Austin area. The UIL collected new and gently used coats for an annual community project that collects and distributes winter coats to eligible children and teenagers in Central Texas. The UIL collected almost 50 coats, and 16 staff members worked to sort and distribute coats at the central distribution center. In total, more than 35,000 coats were collected and distributed for the Coats for Kids project.

This spring, the UIL staff will take part in another yet to be determined community service project to make a positive impact on the community.