RICHMOND, Va. — Hope for Learning is marking a milestone while also launching an ambitious new campaign to help children in need.
Hope for Learning is celebrating five years of providing reading materials, essential supplies, and mentoring to foster a love of reading for elementary students in Title I schools throughout Central Virginia.
Right now, executive director Chuck Caple says the number of families they serve has grown tremendously.
"Because of the economy and what's been going on in this administration, a lot of people are still a little afraid, and so they're really scrounging," said Caple. "And schools are really saying that we need this stuff."
While the number of community partners willing to help Hope for Learning has grown, their delivery capability has not.
"What's happening now is that ourselves, our volunteers, we're having problems because the trunks of our cars and the back seats are getting filled up," explained Caple. "A lot of times, we can't even take the stuff we have because we don't have the proper resources to do that."
That’s why the nonprofit has launched a capital campaign called “Hope on Wheels,” with a goal of raising $125,000 to purchase a mobile delivery and engagement hub—a fully equipped van or two that will help them distribute food, clothing, basic needs, books, and school supplies directly to children and families.
"It will allow us to serve more kids," said Caple. "Because a lot of times, for example, one of our partners calls us and says they have an influx of food, and we can take as much as we can get. Then what we can't take, they've got to give to somebody else or do something else with it. And so, we can only take what we can handle. Once we reach our load capacity, we distribute that, and then that's it. But if we had those vehicles, we could take everything they had for us."
In addition to this new fundraising campaign, Hope for Learning is also hosting its fifth annual charity 5K at Midlothian Mines Park on Saturday, June 7.
To learn more about the "Hope on Wheels" campaign or to register for the 5K, click here.
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