Las Vegas — By Lynn Goya on January 21, 2010 at 8:50 am
Filed under: Vegas charity, Vegas heros, Vegas kids

Vegas Charity Helps Kids

Mrs. Linda Rye, a new 1st grade teacher to Martinez Elementary School in Las Vegas, was puzzled. As she settled down for circle time she brought out one of her favorite books about a little girl’s birthday party, but instead of the sparkle she had envisioned with students clamoring to tell their own birthday stories, she was met with silence. Stunned, she realized not only did none of her students have personal birthday party memories to share, they had never even seen one.

“Do you know what?” she improvised. “My dog’s birthday is next week! Why don’t we plan a birthday party for him?” All week she built her lessons around the upcoming party, making birthday hats, cards and toys for her dog. On the big day she brought in her puppy, a cake for him and a cake for the children. Everyone had such a wonderful time. Mrs. Rye hummed to herself as she straightened the room. “Mrs. Rye.” She smiled down to the little boy as he shyly tugged on her shirt. “Mrs. Rye,” he whispered, “can I please be your dog?”

According to Kids Count, a national organization that tracks children’s wellbeing, almost 40 percent of the kids who attend school in Clark County – nearly 66,000 children — live in poverty; over 105,000 have no health insurance. Paucity affects every aspect of their lives, from their health, to their sense of well being to their ability to do well in school.

Communities in Schools of Southern Nevada, formed in March 2004 by Summerlin resident Louise Helton, is part of a national organization chaired by Las Vegas’ Elaine Wynn. Worth magazine named it one of the 100 charities that will save the world. The group connects community resources to the needs of the school. Each child, CIS believes, deserves the Five Basics: a one-on-one relationship with a caring adult; a safe place to learn and grow; a healthy start and a healthy future; a marketable skill to use upon graduation; and a chance to give back to peers and community. But it does much more than that here in Southern Nevada.

“We try to bring the kids joy,” says Dr. Noah Kohn, Pediatric Medical Director of Clinics in Schools. Kohn became involved after meeting Helton at a wedding. “We were standing at a line,” Helton recalls, “and Dr. Kohn said, ‘I’ve always wanted to do a mobile clinic and instant care.’ I thought, ‘Do I have a job for you!’ Six months later he had closed his private practice in Summerlin and was working with our kids. He is a real modern-day local hero, saving lives and tons of taxpayer dollars because without his skills [these kids] would end up in an emergency room.”

The clinic at Martinez Elementary School, where almost 20 percent of the students are homeless and ¾ of the students who begin the year are long gone by its end, was a gift from a local developer. Helton was aware of the dire lack of health services for homeless and low income kids. She had founded Classroom on Wheels (COW) a mobile library and resource center for rural preschool children. She thought something similar could be used to help reach children with medical needs.

With limited space and no budget, but a willing principal at Martinez, they approached Brad Burns of Centex Homes, to ask if he could donate a construction trailer. The developer shook his head, no, he didn’t think he could do that. Instead, he said, why didn’t he build them a real facility on the school grounds? When they tried to name the $1 million facility after him, again, he shook his head sadly. After his parents? No. “What can we do?” Helton says she asked in frustration. “Find me a place for a second one,” he answered.

Medicine is just one of the kids’ unmet needs. Kohn tells the story of a boy, sent home with chicken pox, crying because he was so hungry, who begged to be allowed to return so he could get something to eat. With over 300 schools in the district, there are over 311,000 children (42 percent) eligible for free and reduced lunch, Helton says. But teachers noticed that on Mondays, many kids returned to school faint from hunger. With the help of the local food bank, Helton began the WeekEND Hunger program where kids eligible for free lunches (and all siblings) receive a backpack loaded with prepared, packaged food to take home. The organization recently enlisted Three Square to lead the program that now reaches into 28 local schools.

CIS also provides clothing, mentoring, career counseling and programs that ensure middle school students make it into high school. “It has been shown that kids not moving forward with their peers into high school have a zero percent chance of graduating from high school,” says Helton. “We find strategic ways of addressing issues that are holding kids back. We have a wonderful school district that takes a lot of blame for social issues.”

This year the demand on all programs has increased significantly. “I’m getting calls from moms who are selling blood plasma to buy shoes for their children,” she says, recalling two brothers who alternated days at school because they shared a pair of shoes. “You have to wear shoes to attend school,” says Helton.

But of all the programs, the monthly Birthday Closet has to be everyone’s favorite. Children with that month’s birthday are treated to a special party with cake, games and, of course presents. Each child gets to go up on stage behind the curtain to select a toy from the array CIS and the Junior League has lain out before them. It is always fun to see what they pick, Helton says.

“One little guy left with a beautiful baby doll,” she recalls. The adults looked at each other, a little puzzled. His teacher sidled up to the boy, “That’s an interesting choice.” “Thank you,” he replied. “My sister has always wanted a baby doll.”

Community in Schools of Southern Nevada helped over 36,000 children last year and coordinated over $850,000 worth of services. To raise funds, they developed the Donate a Dollar program. “If each person in Nevada gave just $1, we would raise almost $3 million,” Helton says. “No one can do everything, but everyone can do something and together we can do anything.”

Community in Schools of Southern Nevada

702-243-2801
info@cisnevada.org

Donate a Dollar Nevada

702-770-7611

Mail Checks to:

Donate a Dollar

c/o Communities in Schools of Nevada

3720 Howard Hughes Parkway

Las Vegas, NV 89169

Three Square Food Bank

4190 N. Pecos Rd.

Las Vegas, NV 89115