Charity Newies mission statement image. “No child should ever be unable to attend school because they lack appropriate clothing.” Credit: Kym Ismaila
To combat clothing insecurity facing children across the country, the Ohio State Fisher College of Business Honors Cohort and Charity Newsies found a creative way to spread awareness.
In collaboration with local nonprofit organization Charity Newsies, Fisher's Honors Cohort will host a “Charity Newsies Fashion Show” where guests can learn more about ways to combat dress anxiety. Suba Lembach, executive director of Charity Newsies, said the event, which will be held at Charity Newsies' headquarters at 4300 Indianola Avenue on Friday at 6:30 p.m., will go ahead. He collaborated with fellow member Kim Ismaila and seven of his colleagues. reality.
The nonprofit organization has been in Franklin County since 1907, and its core mission is to ensure children in need have clothes to wear to school, Lenbach said.
Clothing packs collected by Charity Newsies. Credit: Kym Ismaila
“We provide brand new clothing for every child,” Lembach said. “They are given a coat, a hat, gloves, a week's worth of underwear, six pairs of socks, three shirts, and three pairs of pants. If you go to a school that has uniforms, you will receive a voucher to get the uniform.”
After being tasked with creating a community service project for Fisher's Honors Cohort Program called the “Impact Challenge,” Ismaila, a third-year marketing major, and seven other members, all third-year and first-year students. Ismaila said that the first-year members wanted to produce a project that they all felt passionate about.
“We tried to combine all our passions in one way,” Ismaila said. “Some of our members had a passion for retail, and some of our members realized they had a passion for kids, so we decided to do something with the kids in Columbus. I thought I would like to.”
Ismaila said it was this common purpose to serve children in the Columbus community that motivated the group to reach out to Lenbach and Charity Newsies. However, she said the group initially contacted Lenbacher not with the intention of directly collaborating, but rather seeking advice on other potential initiatives the group could take. . Obviously, this interaction eventually led to a partnership.
Although Lembach played a key role in the development of the project, Ismaila said it was the students who set the wheels in motion.
“We were responsible for reaching out to donors like Goodwill and locations to collect food donations at actual events so that we could put as much money as possible into the actual challenge. ” said Ismaila.
Lenbach said the fashion show will feature children who receive clothing from the nonprofit organization and will be able to strut down the runway in their favorite school uniforms. When Lembach and the rest of Charity Newsies heard about the group's interest in addressing clothing insecurity, they agreed.
“This seemed like a fun way to raise awareness in the general community about the importance of clothing and the intersection of clothing and education,” Lembach said. “We think a lot about the importance of housing for kids to go to school, and we think about food too. All of those things are really important. But we also make sure that kids have the right clothing to go to school. Another important need is to be able to wear them.”
The event will also screen informative videos created by a range of members expanding on the topic of clothing insecurity, including Mr Lembach and other Charity Newsies staff, as well as those personally influenced by the organization. Ismaila said the book featured interviews with families who had lived in the country.
“She talked about her journey and how she became passionate about this subject,” Ismaila said. “We were also able to interview the parents of the children who receive clothing from this facility, and that was a big part of the video. I would like to.”
Charity Newsies, and now the Fishers Honors Cohort, want people to understand the connection between clothing and education.
“Kids need clothes, too, and sometimes it's not as easy for parents to get clothes for their kids as we think,” Lembach said. “For example, about half of Columbus city schools have moved to dress codes, which often require polo shirts and khaki pants, which are much more expensive than T-shirts and jeans. There is a possibility that it will.”
Lenbach and Ismaila said they are excited to see this event come to fruition and are encouraging people to participate in the show, which also includes games and raffles.
“We want everyone to have fun during the event, which is why we include games and raffles,” Ismaila said. “We want to spread awareness and we want kids to have fun. That's our top priority.”
Ticket prices for the event range from $10 to $20. See below for event details. event bright or Honors Cohort x Charity Newsies Instagram page.
