EP# 8: Empowering Communities: The Impact of the Assistance League of Greater Collin County

What makes Beth Smith with Assistance League of Greater Collin County a good neighbor?

Curious about how one small organization can make a massive impact on a community? Join us as we talk with Elizabeth Smith from the Assistance League of Greater Collin County, who shares the heartwarming stories behind their flagship programs. You'll hear about Operation School Bell, which brings joy and confidence to underprivileged school children through new clothing and hygiene kits. Beth also gives us a glimpse into their Listen and Learn program, their thoughtful memory boxes for grieving parents, and innovative projects like crocheting mats for the homeless. Each initiative is a testament to the power of community and the meaningful change that dedicated volunteers can achieve.

Beth's journey from a teaching career to leading an impactful non-profit is nothing short of inspiring. We explore the essence of volunteerism within the Assistance League, showcasing how flexible opportunities allow both members and non-members to contribute significantly. With a core group of 60 to 70 dedicated individuals, the league thrives on the collective energy and commitment of its volunteers. Learn how you can get involved, whether it's through hands-on participation or supporting their grant efforts, by visiting ALGcc.org. Don’t miss this chance to understand how you can make a difference in your community!

To learn more about Assistance League of Greater Collin County go to: algcc.org

Assistance League of Greater Collin County
+19727692299

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Good Neighbor Podcast. The place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, sophia Yvette.

Speaker 2: 0:09

Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast. Are you in need of a non-profit? Surprisingly, one may be closer than you think. Today I have the pleasure of introducing you to your neighbor, Beth Smith, with her business, Assistance League of Greater Collin County. Beth, how are you doing today? Great, thank you, Great. Well, we're excited to learn all about you and your business Can you tell us a bit about your company.

Speaker 3: 0:35

It is a philanthropic organization. It has been in existence in Collin County for 25 years. Would you like to hear what kind of programs we do? Yes, love to, oh, okay.

Speaker 3: 0:53

Well, our signature program, and the one that we're most proud of, is what we call Operation School Bell, and it's called Operation School Bell because we clothe children who don't have enough money to afford clothes to wear to school. We clothe enough money to afford clothes to wear to school. We closed generally 800. This year we're aiming for a thousand. We're thinking big, and what we do is we get recommendations from the school counselors and the people that I can't remember what they're called that work with the parents at Title I schools and they recommend kids who need help, k through 6. And then we take three weekends in September and October and we work with JCPenney's at Stonebriar Mall and we invite them to come out and go shopping and when they come out they can spend $150 per student on clothing. It has to be clothing that they can wear to school. It could be jackets, it could be shoes, it could be regular clothes, but it works out really well and we have kids then that get new clothes, sometimes for the very first time in their lives, because some of them have always had hand-me-downs. We've had kids come in there who have never been in a real store before. They've only been in a thrift store because they've never had new clothes and it's really quite exciting to see the excitement that they have getting their new clothes and walking out proudly with all their little bags and you know, they can get a lot of clothes for 150 because jc pennies works with us and they discount a lot of things for us so that we can provide more clothes for the kids. They also get a hygiene kit, depending on their age, which includes, like a hairbrush and, you know, toothpaste and that kind of stuff. So when they leave they are taken care of for a while and that's our signature program. We've been doing that for 25 years.

Speaker 3: 2:49

We also have what's called listen and learn. We've found that there was a need for kids going between first and second grade. Once they learn how to read, they forget that they have to actually understand what they're reading. I guess they don't forget that. They don't realize that they're expected to understand what they're reading. So we have volunteers and we go out to the school on Tuesdays and Thursdays and spend 20 minutes with the students that need help and they read to us and after they read to us, as they're to us, as they're reading to us, we ask them questions and to help their comprehension. So we've been doing that for three years.

Speaker 3: 3:31

Let's see another thing we do. We have a lot of really crafty people and we have people who make little receiving blankets for children or for babies and we present what we call memory boxes to people at the hospitals if they've lost a child at birth or shortly thereafter. It's a memory box which has a little stuffed animal and it has this little receiving blanket and it's a really nice thing for them to take home from the hospital with them. We also, for 25 years we have been passing out magazines at the hospital to people who like to read. We're reevaluating that program a little bit because people don't read magazines too much anymore and they're really hard to come by.

Speaker 3: 4:21

Another thing we started a couple years ago was crocheting mats for the homeless. We work with the streetless, showers people and for about 100 hours of crocheting time you can provide a mat for a homeless person to sleep on. Now it takes so long because these mats are made out of grocery bags plastic grocery bags and it takes hundreds of bags and then, like I say, about 100 hours per mat. But they're really great because they're fairly comfortable and, of course, they don't get wet. What other? Oh, we're also working.

Speaker 3: 5:02

We started working last year, about a year and a half ago, with an organization called Hope Restored Mission which works with the homeless people and helps them get on their feet. Now we don't provide them any money, but we provide them a lot of volunteer hours per week. We call bingo at one of the old folks homes and it's really fun to see the residents get excited about not about bingo so much as the prizes. They really go for the prizes and they fight over that jewelry. I just want you to know that we also take them Christmas stockings and, you know, go caroling. So we try to work with other groups where there's a need. Our job is to remain relevant and really help people. We earn our money by fundraising and of different kinds of fundraising and also we get grant money. But other than that, we're an all-volunteer organization. Nobody's paid. It just all comes from donations.

Speaker 2: 6:09

Wow, and how did you get into this business?

Speaker 3: 6:19

did you get into this business? Well, after I retired, you know, I'm a retired school teacher and I just missed kids. And so I had some friends that were in this organization who had retired before I did, and they kind of roped me in and I've been in since in, and I've been in since.

Speaker 2: 6:37

Wow Well, are there any myths or misconceptions in this organization?

Speaker 3: 6:43

No, I don't think so. I think everybody pretty knows pretty well, once they're in the organization, know what it is. But we are the best kept secret in Collin County, I think. For the amount of things that we do, we don't get much publicity for it and you know that's partially our fault. We do get confused with the assistance center of Collin County and that provides rent money and utility money for different people. So we get phone calls for them daily but unfortunately we don't have money to give out to help people. We would love to be able to help them but we just can't do everything.

Speaker 2: 7:26

Well, for being in such a selfless industry. Can you describe one hardship or life challenge that you rose above and can now say because of it you're better and stronger? I mean you must have a story to you know, go and help so much with everyone else well, I don't know that.

Speaker 3: 7:44

I mean I had, I've had a pretty good life. I was a divorced single mother and I went because I was a school teacher. Of course I didn't make a lot of money, so I had four jobs but luckily I had my parents to help take care of my daughter while I was working the jobs. But I think it really taught me how to manage my money and I really think it taught my daughter how to manage money too, because she could see that you know, you can't just go to the store and get whatever you want. You have to kind of budget for your life. So it did teach me things and it's and I it really makes me feel good because I know we're helping a lot of single mothers that's awesome.

Speaker 2: 8:34

Well, please tell our listeners one thing they should remember about Assistance League of the Greater Collin County.

Speaker 3: 8:42

Well, I think it's in our title the Assistance League. We are here to assist people. Now, if they would like to join us, we would love to have them come and join us. We're not a very large organization. We vary between 60 and 70 members, but they can also come and just volunteer to work with us and they don't have to join. We have what are called community volunteers and it's really nice because when we put in our volunteer hours, when we're applying for grants and stuff, they want to know how many hours you know the organization puts in and it's thousands, it's thousands of hours, but we can always use help.

Speaker 3: 9:23

Like I say, we're all volunteers, so you can contact us at the our web pages ALGccorg that stands for Assistance League of Greater Collin County, algccorg, and all of our contact information is on there.

Speaker 2: 9:47

Well, beth, I really appreciate you being on the show and we wish you and your business the best moving forward.

Speaker 3: 9:55

Well, thank you very much.

Speaker 1: 9:58

Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to gnpfriscocom. That's gnpfriscocom, or call 469-221-9345.