Girl Scouts & Families: We Need Your Help!

The 5th Annual End-of-Year School Supply Recycling Project

Scouts & Families: We need your help once again with this project, taking place throughout the Vestavia Hills school system, to sort through the students’ and schools’ donations on

Tuesday afternoon, May 25th
3:30-5:30
Vestavia Hills United Methodist Church

The work will be easy enough for Scouts of all ages -- sorting through the bags of pencils, papers, notebooks, and more, that are being collected from around the area schools to be donated to the students and classrooms in the heart of the Alabama Black Belt.

Did you know?

• The Alabama Black Belt consists of a group of primarily agricultural counties, with dark rich soil, extending east to west across Central Alabama, that currently experience high rates of poverty, illiteracy and infant mortality.

• Unemployment in Alabama’s Black Belt counties is 16.2%. More than a quarter of the work force (25.1%) is unemployed in Wilcox County alone.

• In Wilcox County (where Gee's Bend is located), the median household income is $16,646, compared to $50,233 for the country -- nearly 40% of the population is below the poverty level.

• In Selma (a prosperous community by comparison), the median household income is $21,261, while unemployment is at 18.2%, nearly twice the national rate.

• 8 Black Belt counties are among the 100 poorest counties in the United States.

• The state Education Budget cut money for classroom supplies; Black Belt schools will be especially hard hit.

We hope each of you can spend at least one hour helping out this very worthy cause—
IT WON’T HAPPEN WITHOUT YOU!

This community project is made possible by the cooperation of local businesses, schools and organizations including:

Publix; Vestavia Hills Girl Scouts; Two Men and a Truck; Friends of Hale County;
Vestavia Hills United Methodist Church;and the Vestavia Hills School System.

Any questions?
Susan Thomas @ 822-4852