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Collecting
Unwanted Items to Help Build Dreams
You might have seen a truck around town with a logo on
it that says, “HOPE Shoppe” with a lot of items in the
back. You may have wondered, what is HOPE Shoppe? You
didn’t know but you thought it sounded good. Or you
might have thought it’s another organization like
Goodwill or Gateway Mission. You would have been right,
but they have a slightly different purpose. HOPE Shoppe
is a humanitarian environmental group. The HOPE in
HOPE Shoppe stands for ‘Helping Out People & the Earth’
and it is their motto.
What can a person do that will help people and the
Earth? Well, if you have usable paint in your home
that you don’t need, donate it to HOPE Shoppe! That
paint will then be used to paint, for free, the home of
a child in inner city Jackson. Hopefully, something as
simple as a freshly painted house or room, will give the
children hope for a brighter, more colorful future. The
paint is kept out of the streams and rivers (which helps
the Earth) and is used to help people by painting their
homes. It’s a win/win situation. It’s a win for the
Earth and a win for the people.
Other items are welcomed by HOPE Shoppe as well.
Furniture, clothes, toys, electronics and many other
items are collected and are then either repurposed (upcycled),
recycled or reused. Helping children and giving them
hope for the future is our number one priority. The
funding we receive will directly benefit children and
youth projects in Mississippi and around the world.
Since HOPE Shoppe is a 501 (c) 3 charity organization,
the donations are tax deductible, another win for
people!
You may be wondering how this all began. It began with
the dream of a 13 year old boy, Jonathan Lee, from
Ridgeland, Mississippi. He took the command that God
gave Adam to take care of the Garden of Eden (Earth)
seriously. Many people think that environmentalism is
all about global warming or protecting certain species.
Jonathan takes it a little differenly by believing that
helping the Earth should also benefit people. For
example, instead of planting just shade trees, plant
fruit trees or food-bearing trees whenever or wherever
possible. This way people are helped (with the food
from the trees) and the Earth is helped. Believe it
not, Jonathan took this idea to the former leader of
North Korea, Kim Jong-il. He wanted to help provide
food for the starving children there. He didn’t just
talk about it, he actually went to North Korea and
delivered his letter. The story was covered by CNN, BBC
and other news organizations around the world. Even
though he was invited to speak on several shows, such as
the Today Show and GMA, he decided not to go. He
declined the invitations because being famous wasn’t his
purpose, helping the children was.
Since it’s founding in 2009, HOPE Shoppe has helped
thousands of children around the world. While that is
admirable, they want to do more for their home state,
Mississippi. Kyoung Lee, HOPE Shoppe’s president and
board member, says that they are project oriented not
re-sale oriented. Donations will help fund the
projects HOPE Shoppe has in mind for the Jackson Metro
and other areas. He said, “We are small but passionate
about what we do. Helping children and the Earth.”
Everything that is done in the Jackson Metro area is
possible because of volunteers like Jordan Douglas. He
helps HOPE Shoppe by going to neighborhoods and passing
out flyers. Jordan also helps out by picking up
donations for HOPE Shoppe. He says it makes him feel
really good to know he’s helping people.
Kathleen Matthews, a recent donor to HOPE Shoppe, was
impressed by the professionalism and courtesy of their
volunteers while picking up items from her Madison
home. She expressed her willingness to share HOPE
Shoppe’s information with others and plans to use them
again in the future for other donation pickups.
Currently, HOPE Shoppe is operating out of a warehouse,
but is hopeful for a store front in the near future.
If you are interested in learning more about HOPE
Shoppe, please visit
www.iceyhope.org.
If you are cleaning house, moving out or just want to
donate, please remember HOPE Shoppe. Give hope to
children and help the Earth!
AsianInfo.org
supports I.C.E.Y. -
H.O.P.E. (non-profit org)
(International
Cooperation of Environmental Youth - Helping Our Polluted
Earth) Any advertisement you view helps save the
environment! Thanks! |
