By NANCY HILER
One of the boys carried a bag of clean diapers, another had a package of toothbrushes and another held an infant travel playpen.
One of the girls had her hands full with two big shampoo bottles, while another held four bars of soap, and others carried boxes of infant cereal or cans of spaghetti or soup. Two children stood on chairs, holding a poster the group made that read, "Gunther has a heart for the homeless" -- the same saying on the paper hearts each of the youngsters displayed.
All smiles, these 11- and 12-year-old members of the Students Against Destructive Decisions club at Jacob Gunther School in North Bellmore were brimming with delight at having collected their armloads of goods for the homeless. Their expressions turned serious, however, when they explained the reasons for their generosity.
"We collected toothbrushes, canned food, baby food and other things because we wanted to help the homeless," 11-year-old Terrence Connors said, quick to explain that he was talking about families on Long Island, not the typical image of isolated loners on city streets.
"The homeless on Long Island are mainly children," fellow SADD member Ciera Paily added.
"Half of the homeless on Long Island are kids," student Despina Kamarinos said. "Some live in run-down buildings or abandoned cars." The concern on his face made it clear that neither he nor his classmates had ever experienced anything like that.
The idea for the collection came about when Ellen Perrick, a Gunther social worker and the SADD club adviser, showed the children a flier that the Nassau-Suffolk Coalition for the Homeless sent her, asking organizations to collect items for their "Have a Heart for the Homeless" drive.
Participation in Gunther's SADD club is voluntary, Perrick explained, encouraged that close to 90 percent of the school's sixth-graders have chosen to join. SADD is a 25-year-old, school-based organization whose mission is to help students make safe decisions, spread education and prevention messages among their peers, and take part in positive activities. The Gunther group meets once every six-day cycle at recess, and sometimes for special events after school.
"We all decide together what we want to do, what we want to work on," Perrick said, adding that she is always willing to listen to ideas that the children and others may have for participating in activities rather than raising money.
"We sent home letters to everyone asking if they'd be nice enough to donate," Paily said. Perrick said that after they read about and discussed the issue, club members also went into the younger-grade classrooms throughout the school and described the plight of the homeless on Long Island. She said she was also thankful to sixth-grade teacher Michele Gerbe for her support and assistance with the club.
Homeless on Long Island
According to the Nassau-Suffolk Coalition for the Homeless, homelessness is a growing problem on Long Island, with the homeless population numbering in the thousands and steadily increasing. Two-thirds of homeless people are members of families, and half are children. Lost jobs and lack of affordable housing are two factors that contribute to the problem.
The Gunther SADD Club's "Have a Heart" campaign was to culminate in the students' delivering the donated items to the NSCH at an evening candlelight vigil sponsored by the organization on Feb. 13 at Farmingdale State College. The children also planned to hold up the banner they made at the event. But the weather was bad that day, and Perrick, protective of the youngsters, decided against attending.
"We had about a thousand people attend," Associate Director Greta Guarton said later. "I can't even begin to tell you the number of items that were donated and went right out the door that night into the hands of people who desperately needed them."
"By donating this food and these supplies, we make [the homeless] feel that people care about them," SADD member Jake Gabrus said.
"We're trying to make a difference in the world," said fellow student Ilani Garcia.
Comments about this story? NHiler@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 234.
