FRANKLIN
For $5, you can buy a weekend backpack for a child so that he or she does not have to go hungry. The Franklin-Southampton United Way is focusing on the public schools this year and its agencies that help area children be successful, Director Anne Bryant said.

“The canned line is that ‘Our Children are our Future,’” she said. “Our little United Way agency will not break the cycle of poverty. But every little bit helps. You never know, getting a book to kids might help them grow up and break the cycle.”

The goal this year is to raise $150,000.

“All of the money stays local in Franklin and Southampton County,” Bryant said. “One-hundred percent goes to the agencies with programs.”

United Way’s administration expenses are covered by the Camp Foundations and the Franklin-Southampton Charities.

Here are some of the ways United Way and its partner agencies are helping children be successful. The children:

• Get a boost in school learning through the Early Head Start and Head Start programs run by The Children’s Center

• Have fun, learning opportunities through the Blackwater Regional Library Summer Reading Programs

• Do their homework during Power Hour at the Boys & Girls Club at S.P. Morton Elementary School

• Enjoy a hot meal at the Boys & Girls Club and get weekend back-packs filled with nutritious food through the Food Bank of Southeastern Virginia

• Stay in school thanks to the mentoring/tutoring program at J. P. King Middle School provided by Tidewater Youth Services

• Read free books donated by United Way and Blackwater Regional Libraries

• Have a safe place to stay at the Genieve Shelter for domestic violence

For more information, contact Bryant at 569-8929 or by email at uw@uwfranklinsouthampton.org. To donate via check, send to P.O. Box 366, Franklin, VA, 23851. You can also donate online at www.uwfranklinsouthampton.org.