By Amy Townsend
When we think of the Holidays, we think about delicious food, gathering with friends and family, exchanging gifts, watching movies, decorating cookies, and drinking hot chocolate – but we should also be thinking about opportunities to take care of our community.
For our November Aragon Cares, we purchased items for Sacred Heart’s survival sack program. This program provides basic necessities to our unhoused neighbors.
Survival sacks provide individuals with basic necessities.
What is Sacred Heart?
Sacred Heart is a California-based non-profit that was founded in 1964 with a mission to feed hungry families.
Today, Sacred Heart has expanded to support the following mission:
“Our mission is to build a community free from poverty by creating hope, opportunity, and action. We provide essential services, work together to improve our lives, organize for justice, and inspire our community to love, serve, and share.”
Their three core beliefs are:
1. All people have a right to adequate food, clothing, housing, education, health care, and personal safety.
2. All people deserve the opportunity to achieve economic self-sufficiency and healthy relationships.
3. With faith, creativity, and effort, resources are available to fulfill their vision.
Sacred Heart’s main focus is to ensure people have control over their basic rights such as food, shelter, and clothing while also offerings tools for self-sufficiency. In addition to offering year-round support to individuals and families, Sacred Heart hosts various donation drives for the community to contribute to helping their neighbors.
What is the Survival Sack Program?
Sacred Heart’s survival sack program provides backpacks filled with basic necessities to unhoused individuals. These necessities include deodorant, first aid kits, socks, underwear, toothpaste, shampoo, combs, a blanket, etc.
These sacks are filled with full-sized items, with the expectation that they will last for 3 months.
How Aragon Research Contributed
To purchase items for this drive, the Aragon team took a trip to our local Target. We split up into two groups, each with a shopping list, and gathered all the items to fill a few backpacks for the drive. We then dropped off the items at the specified Sacred Heart drop-off location.
This was a great opportunity for us to help our community while also having fun as a team.
How Can You Get Involved?
To donate to Sacred Heart’s survival sack drive, you can check out this page. You have the option to purchase the donation items yourself, or you can also provide a monetary donation to help Sacred Heart purchase more supplies to fulfill its mission.