FOOTHILL RANCH, Calif. -
May 10, 2017 -
PRLog -- Did you know that there are over 55,000 homeless neighbors living in southern California? Nicholas Ortiz, 15 years old, saw them camped out in the Santa Ana River bed and along Skid Row, when he was in downtown Los Angeles last year and the memory stuck with him. He noticed them when he went to his grandma's house in Anaheim. When an elderly man with a sign approached the cars, Nicholas was disappointed when nobody stopped to help. With that in mind, he decided to do something about it, making it the center of his Eagle Scout leadership project. As a call to action, he will be leading his school, troop and community in gathering 250 backpacks, organizing volunteers to pack them with essential toiletries and deliver them to the Illumination Foundation in Irvine, CA benefitting the homeless in the community. The backpacks will serve as a gift to homeless individuals, opening up conversation and providing a bridge back to the center of society by introducing them to the valuable services that the Illumination Foundation provides. " I feel that the homeless should be brought back from the fringes of society. As compassionate people we can help them do that", said Ortiz. The goal is ambitious, but young Nicholas is compelled to live his Boy Scout oath of service to others and hopefully inspire others to provide a helping hand!
From May 9 through June 10, Nicholas Ortiz of Boy Scout Troop 639 will be collecting 250 backpacks, toiletries and blankets for the homeless community of Orange County and southern California on behalf of the Illumination Foundation. For more information and to make a monetary donation go to
https://www.gofundme.com/youbreakthecycle or visit his website at
https://youbreakthecycle.wixsite.com/mysite
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