Boys and Girls Club packs clothing for Lorain County families

LORAIN — About 3,200 bags of clothes will be distributed to children throughout Lorain County in the coming weeks. On Tuesday, staff members at the Boys and Girls Club in Lorain packed up the bags, working off clothing orders sent in. Each bag has about $400 worth of clothes in it. The clothes come from a Temporary Assistance to Needy Families grant given to Lorain County Jobs and Family Services. Usually the money is used both for this program and others programs, too. But because the COVID-19 pandemic canceled other programs, extra funds went to the clothing program. Instead of packing 950 bags, the Boys and Girls Club was able to prepare 3,200. Diane Crumley, Boys and Girls Clubs of Northeast Ohio's area director, said Jobs and Family Services determined eligibility for families and children. From there, families were sent letters to see if they would be interested in clothing. Jobs and Family Services sent out 7,500 letters, and out of those, 3,200 came back. Clothing is school appropriate, and families had three package options: school uniform clothing, casual clothing or a combination of the two. Bags also included brand new shoes, book bags, three-in-one jackets, two hoodies, socks and winter hats. "We've received orders from all throughout the county this year," Crumley said. "So, we're stretching from Vermilion to Wellington, Columbia Station to Avon Lake, Sheffield Lake, Avon. It really represents well that COVID has created a time that families need this type of support and we're really grateful that we're in partnership to do it." The Boys and Girls Club is trying to figure out how it can still serve students, but safely, in light of the pandemic, Crumley said. Packing the clothing gave staff an opportunity to get back in the building as they prepare to launch new programming for students and children. Families will pick up clothing over two weekends in September. Lorain families will pick up from the Lorain Boys and Girls Club location on Pearl Avenue. Any families from other cities will pick up at the Elyria South site. About 1,800 bags of clothing will be at the Lorain site, while about 1,300 bags will at the Elyria site. Contact Laina Yost at (440) 329-7121 or lyost@chroniclet.com.