High School Students Participate In Project Commit; Assemble Bags For Low-Income Families

Hygiene bags and kids' activity bags will be distributed to four food pantries in Franklin and Ripley counties.

Shutterstock photo.

(Batesville, Ind.) – The Batesville Area Resource Center has partnered with Hillenbrand, Batesville Tool & Die and Ivy Tech Community College on Project Commit. The initiative served as an education opportunity by exposing students to manufacturing while making a positive and impactful contribution to the community.

On April 16, select students at six high schools in Ripley and Franklin counties identified by the Project Commit team assembled over 500 bags for low-income families. While the majority of bags were filled with hygiene-related items, students also completed kids' activity bags.

"BARC is proud to have partnered with Project Commit organizers to not only expose area youth to careers in manufacturing, but to also make such an impact to those in need with the hygiene and activity bags. Working with Hillenbrand, Batesville Tool & Die and Ivy Tech was wonderfully well-organized," reported BARC board President Angela Byers Weldishofer.

Each adult hygiene bag contained a shampoo, bar soap, hand soap, toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, small and large hand sanitizers, bandage/safety kit and brochures about area nonprofits housed at the Batesville Area Resource Center.

Each bag for a child, packed to encourage creativity and fun, included activity books and flash cards, drawing books, colored pencils, crayons, sidewalk chalk, frisbee, poncho and bandage/safety kit.

This community impact project was supported by a grant from the Indiana Manufacturing Competitiveness Center (IN-MaC), hosted by Purdue University and delivered in partnership with Ivy Tech Community College and Vincennes University. The grant program fosters the growth of youth and adult manufacturing initiatives around the state.

The project also was made possible by area manufacturers, including Hillenbrand, Batesville Tool & Die, Med-Mizer, Crum Trucking, Integrity Tool, Wood-Mizer, Elgin Fasteners and Hill-Rom, which made monetary contributions for the purchase of bag contents.

In-kind product donations were made by Thrive Market, Kroger, Southeastern Indiana Economic Opportunity Corp., Margaret Mary Health and Ireland Home Based Services, according to Byers Weldishofer.

Products were collected, purchased and divided up for assembly by BARC board committee members with help from New Horizons Rehabilitation clients. The contents were transported to high schools by New Horizons as well.

The bags will be taken to four food pantries located in Ripley and Franklin counties for families in need: Batesville Area Ministerial Association; Milan Community Relief Fund; Fishes and Loaves, Osgood; and SIEOC, Brookville.