Phone Charging Kits by Kyndness Tech
Donation protected
Welcome a people who saw the news report!
I was on a local politics podcast recently where I talked about my time homeless in the A2 area. Link in the update section.
Hear my story about my time living on the streets look up "Ann Arbor AF" its episode 5 and it's available on most podcast apps.
ABSOLUTELY NONE OF THIS MONEY GOES TO ME OR MICHELLE. EVERY PENNY GOES TO THE PROJECT.
We will continue to be involved in the community regardless of funds but your funding allows us to keep addressing this issue head on ourselves.
Hi my name is Ariah and I was homeless a few months ago and I was very lucky to have gotten help in getting off the streets. I came to this city alone,injured and with less than $300 to my name .
My first stop in the area was the ER. From there I would try to navigate a system that is not meant for rapid response to newly homeless individuals or the homeless community at large.
Now more then ever in a post pandemic society it is vital that people in need have a charged working phone so they do not fall through the cracks.
Almost every appointment is done remotely now and if a agency can not get through to you on the phone they just move on to the next person in line because there are too many people in need for them to wait.
Ultimately It wasn't the understaffed and underfunded agencies that got me off the streets, it was human kindness.
I really believe that being kind to one another is a gift and it's one we don't share often enough with strangers or people who might be in a way.
Keeping my phone charged and active was a priority because without it I lost access to the people who would help me get to this point.
People unable to charge their phones regularly and keep them active will more easily slip through the cracks in our current system.
Our society is basically built around them and without them it can be difficult to apply for work or receive callbacks from the people they need
I'm not the first homeless person with this problem and I won't be the last, especially during this pandemic where libraries and restaurant lobbies are closed to the public. Not having easy access to outlets and places to go for warmth, people on the streets are forced to trespass and other potentially illegal things to survive.
My close friend Michelle and I have decided to take this problem head on and bought nearly $600 in accessories to make phone kits for the homeless.
We are currently working with the Delonis Center as a program under the name "KyndnessTech" for the purposes of expanding to neighboring areas and more
Every kit consists of:
1 Precharged portable battery pack/bank
1 USB wall charger/block
1 Multi-End USB charging cable
10 Individually wrapped alcohol wipes for use by all coming in contact with the bags.
The actions taken since officially launching have is to allowed us to distribute 160 kits and counting to the people in the homeless community so they can have them and use them.
We have ironed out a lot of bumps as the month has passed us by.
So please donate whatever you can so we can get more kits made and help anyone and everyone in need. I would very much appreciate it!
I(Ariah) work part time at a grocery store to pay for rent,food, and bills with roommates. This is a passion project that we decided to take it up on January 11th 2021 at 4:38pm
Michelle is full time and has graciously offered her spare time and weekends to this cause.
She's got plans of her own in the future with a run for city council in 2022.
Author's Note: Gloves were used in the set up of photos.
Equipment and Supplies are only touched with gloves.
Kit accessories are sanitized before packaging and distribution.
Organizer
Ariah Schugat
Organizer
Ann Arbor, MI