Homeless Students Receive Christmas Gifts from SoftRock Outreach

Dec. 7, 2011 - PRLog -- Orlando, FL – Central Florida students who take part in the Osceola County Public Schools program Families in Transition (FIT) will see their Christmas dreams come true as they receive presents provided by SoftRock Outreach and other organizations at a holiday party thrown by FIT for the kids and their parents on Dec. 9.

FIT is a grant-funded program that assists homeless children in the school system with transportation to school, learning supplies, free meals, tutoring, and referrals to local service agencies.  Westside, an Osceola County K-8 school, has over 300 children enrolled who are considered homeless, many of whom live in extended-stay hotels, cars, tents or shelters with their parents.

SoftRock Community Outreach will help these children experience a proper Christmas by giving them presents donated by the staff at SoftRock and other community groups.

During the party hosted by FIT, volunteers will entertain and distract the children while parents select toys their children would like, and then surprise them with the presents on Christmas morning. The younger siblings of the children who are not currently enrolled in school will also receive gifts so that they, too, will have toys for Christmas.

Terri Gladwell, the President of SoftRock Community Outreach, explained why these kids need a Christmas miracle.

“After viewing the recent 60 Minutes segment covering homeless children in Central Florida, we knew we had to do whatever we could to help,” she said. “We can’t bear the thought of kids having to live in cars and shelters, so we couldn’t allow them to not have a magical Christmas experience like every other child.”

The Outreach Committee expects to bring 150 toys to the party at the Westside School on 2551 Westside Boulevard in Kissimmee, Fla. The party will be from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Donations are provided as part of the Outreach Committee’s Month of Miracles, an annual effort to raise awareness of local children’s causes by donating gifts to children most in need of a little Christmas magic.

# # #

About Families in Transition: Through grant funding from the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act, the Families in Transition Program was established in April 2003 to serve the educational needs of children in the Osceola County School System who are considered homeless.

About SoftRock Community Outreach: The charitable arm of SoftRock, Inc., the Outreach Committee raises money for local causes year-round through raffles, yard sales and other fund raising opportunities.