Grandmothers of the Light

Because Mom or Dad is in CDC (California Department of Corrections) custody. Think it doesn’t affect you? Think again. The chances that your child or grandchild goes to school with one of these kids is about 1 in 10. A minimum of 9% of California’s children have a parent in prison and no one knows how many have a grandparent in prison. The inmate population grows older each year and increases each year as California continues to lead the world in numbers of people behind bars.

It gets worse… 1 in 5 kids in California lives in extreme poverty. There are almost 10 million children in this state and about 20% live in poverty, with about 9% orphaned by the prison system. By any standards that is a lot of children in crisis. For in depth records and statistics visit our E-Tour pages. The plight of all these children affects us all and is critical to the future of California. The numbers are too big to be ignored and the social implications too profound to walk away from.

Grandmothers of the Light is a non-profit organization (TAX ID # 20-5738652) formed for the benefit of children in adverse conditions including poverty, incarcerated parents, illness and abuse. Your help is desperately needed to insure that these children are able to stay in touch with incarcerated family members and have access to phone calls, mailing supplies and visits so they can. No child should lack school clothes, supplies, birthday gifts, Christmas gifts, or any other needs that arise because of poverty. Please take a few minutes to look at our website and get to know some of the kids we want to help.

GRANDMOTHERS OF THE LIGHT NEEDS LIST

(Please share this with anyone you wish) (Call 559-683-7857 for pick up) WE REALLY NEED YOUR HELP (mail can go to P.O. Box 3443, Oakhurst, CA 93644 or UPS to 40511 Road 222, Bass Lake, CA 93604)

Monetary donations of any amount to finance our programs such as visitor’s breakfasts, emergency family needs, phone calls to kids from parents, summer camp tuition for the kids, clothing and school supplies for the kids, medical supplies not covered by insurance, special shoes, braces, in home care, Christmas and birthday gifts, holiday meals (Thanksgiving) and more.

Food items for the breakfasts (cereal of all kinds, fresh fruit, bakery goods, eggs, sausage, ham, bacon, fruit juice, coffee, tea, cocoa) (call us for pick up) Snack bag items (fruit roll ups, granola bars, bottled water and juice, crackers, cookies, fresh fruit, any healthy, individually packaged snack item) We pack plenty for the long ride home so use your imagination!

Coupons and certificates for all fast food restaurants, any kind of food vouchers or gift certificates for pizza, KFC, almost anywhere kids like to go. $2 gifts for pictures at prison visiting. Notecards and stationary, stamps and envelopes so kids can write parents, tablecovers for 90 inch round tables, any color, fabric or disposable Paper good such as plates, napkins, plastic flatware, to go containers, bowls, sandwich bags all sizes, cups for hot and cold drinks to go. Travel bag goodies (we love the Dollar Store stuff!) Such as coloring books, crayons, sunhats, journals, art supplies, pens, stuffed toys, games of all kinds, flash cards, story books for all ages, ipods, DVD players, watches for all ages, travel kleenex, wet wipes, hair ties and clips, small pillows, lap blankets, comfy slippers(from booties on up), all baby items, lip balm or chapsticks, any sort of toy that is safe (no guns, small pieces, messy playdough, etc) and can be taken on the bus without upsetting the bus drivers! No slingshots, water pistols, bows and arrows, etc.

OUR KIDS ARE FROM 10 DAYS OLD TO 17 YEARS OLD, so we need every size, color and type you can think of. New, unwrapped Christmas gifts for every age, both boys and girls. Holiday items such as candy canes, Halloween candy, Easter candy, etc. We have lots of teenagers so please help us with items suitable for them as well. Gift certificates are wonderful for music, Starbucks, Wal-Mart, Jamba Juice, Target, any major store in California. There are also Visa gift cards you can buy in denominations of $25 and up that the kids can use anywhere Visa is accepted. This enables them to pick out what they need or want. Grocery store vouchers, especially with the holidays coming, gasoline gift cards and motel vouchers for prison visits. Many of these people are grandparents, foster parents or extended family members struggling to raise kids whose parents are incarcerated. The prisons are located in remote areas making visits difficult to almost impossible without help. THANK YOU!

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