A group of teens earning service learning hours as part of the Summer Civic Group set up by Rockville’s Community Service Division collected enough donations to fill 44 baskets with household supplies for the Stepping Stones Shelter in Rockville.
The original goal was to put together 15 welcome baskets for the center to provide families when they move into a home. The baskets contained everything from kitchen items to household cleaning supplies to linens and toiletries.
The Summer Civic Group began as a pilot last year and was expanded this summer. The program is divided into two three-week sessions and meets Monday through Thursday, ending Aug. 4.
“My goal is to help youth give back in a meaningful way and find an interest or passion that [teens] did not know they had, so I try to make the program diverse in experiences,” said Kate Bouwkamp, community services program coordinator.
The Stepping Stones Shelter, according to its website, “provides a continuum of services (emergency shelter, permanent supportive housing, and post-shelter support) to homeless families with children in order to move them from crisis to a stable home environment.” The organization was founded in 1982 and today operates out of the historic Dawson farmhouse in Rockville.