Mike
Potter
Eagle Project
Initial Project Plan: June 9,1998
My Eagle Project would be a supply drive and collection to benefit the
IFC Community House, and ultimately, the homeless and those in need.
During the course of the project, participants would collect basic
articles of clothing, such as T-shirts, socks, and underwear, and home
necessities such as sheets and towels. These materials would be
collected in a variety of ways and would be donated to the IFC Shelter
when the drive was complete.
The first method of collection would be through door to door requests
in neighborhoods, similar to the way in which a food drive is done.
Scouts could visit friends and neighbors one weekend with a list of
needs, and could ask that the neighbor buy one or two things off the
list. The Scout would allow one to two weeks for the neighbor to shop,
and then would return to pick up the donations.
The second method of collection would be to set up a table outside of a
large store, such as a Wal-Mart or a K-Mart. The table would be staffed
by Scouts who would give shoppers a list of items needed with the
request that the shopper buy one item off the list and return it to the
table. This would give the shoppers the opportunity to donate during
the course of their normal activities.
Finally, boxes for the needed goods could be placed at churches in the
area and announcements made that supplies were needed. This arrangement
would give churchgoers the opportunity to donate to the Inter-faith
Council shelter, an organization already support by area parishes. The
boxes could be left at the churches for six to eight weeks and checked
on periodically to give parishioners ample opportunity for
participation.
This project will benefit the IFC Community House at 100 West Rosemary
Street in Chapel Hill, and ultimately, the homeless and underprivileged
of the area. It will benefit them by providing much needed supplies
that will assist them in carrying out their goals of helping the
homeless. Without the assistance of groups such as the Boy Scouts of
America, organizations of the IFC are forced to divert time and money
that could be spent helping those in need.
The project might be carried out in early December during the holiday
season, as more shoppers at that time would yield more donations,
especially at the tables in front of the department stores. However,
December raises the trouble of increased 'competition' from other
groups seeking to help the needy, and permission to request donations
in front of a store might be harder to come by.
Who will benefit? - June 11, 1998
My Eagle Project will benefit the IFC Community House at 100 West
Rosemary Street in Chapel Hill, NC, and ultimately, the homeless and
underprivileged of the area. The project will collect a significant
amount of the durable supplies and clothing the IFC Community House
needs to function and carry out its mission. As a non-profit
organization, the IFC relies on donations from other charitable
organizations and from the community to meet its needs.
The supplies collected during the course of the project would improve
the standard of living for some of the less privileged, giving them one
less thing to worry about. The donation of such supplies is an enormous
service not only for the homeless, but also for the IFC Community
House, who would otherwise need to search for other means of meeting
their needs. Without the assistance of groups such as the Boy Scouts of
America, organizations such as the IFC are forced to divert time and
money that could be spent helping those in need to finding the
necessary supplies.
This project will alleviate part of the burden on the IFC Community
House to find the necessary clothing and personal supplies for the
guests at the shelter, and will allow them to focus on serving those
guests in more immediate ways. This benefits both the personnel at the
shelter as well as those homeless and other guests who stay at the
sheeter and rely on donated clothing and personal supplies.
Eagle Project Description: September 18, 1998
My Eagle Project will be a supply drive and collection to benefit the
IFC (Inter Faith Council) Community House. The Inter-Faith Council is a
non-profit organization supported by local churches, whose mission is
to help the homeless and those in need. The IFC has been around for
over 20 years, and is worthy of our assistance in carrying out its
mission. This project has been discussed with and endorsed by the IFC,
specifically Angela Paris, Office Manager at the IFC Community House,
who, due to the indisposition of Executive Director Chris Moran, is the
most senior executive official at the Community House. During the
course of the project, participants will collect basic articles of
clothing, such as T-shirts, socks, and underwear, and home necessities
such as sheets and towels. These materials will be collected in a
variety of ways and will be donated to the IFC Community House when the
drive is complete.
The first method of collection will be through door to door requests in
neighborhoods, similar to the way in which a food drive is done. This
drive will involve the entire Troop, as well as personal friends from
other area Troops, and as many Scouts as possible will be needed to
assist with this segment of the project. Scouts will visit friends and
neighbors one weekend with a list of needs, and will ask that the
neighbor buy one or two things off the list. Multiple copies of the
list will be printed up in order to allow the Scouts to leave a copy
with neighbors. The Scout will allow one week for the neighbor to shop,
and then will return to pick up the donations. All donations collected
will then be brought to a Scout meeting on Tuesday night where they
will be inventoried and then taken, by me, with assistance from other
volunteers, to the IFC Shelter the next day. This portion of the drive
will be carried out in late November.
The second method of collection will be to set up a table outside of a
large store, specifically the Wal-Mart in New Hope Commons. The table
will be set up two weekends during store hours, the weekend of October
3rd and 4th, and the weekend of November 7'h and 8th. The table will be
staffed from noon to 6 p.m. on Saturdays and from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on
Sundays. This time will be broken down into three-hour segments on
Saturday and two-hour segments on Sunday, with two Scouts working each
segment. Permission to set up such a table has been obtained from the
manager of the New Hope Commons Wal-Mart, Mr. Chris Dodson. The Scouts
staffing the table will give shoppers a list of items needed with the
request that the shopper buy one item off the list and return it to the
table. This arrangement will give the shoppers the opportunity to
donate during the course of their normal activities. The table will be
set up for the better part of the day, and after the daily collection
was through, the supplies donated will be taken to the IFC Community
House.
Finally, boxes for the needed goods will be placed at churches in the
area and announcements made that supplies were needed. Churches
selected include St. Thomas More, the Newman Catholic Church, the
United Church of Christ, and the Chapel of the Cross, all of whom carry
out a similar program; University Baptist Church, who has agreed to
take part and will announce the need for donations in its newsletter;
University Presbyterian Church, where the need for donations will be
announced by myself during both Sunday masses on October 11th; and
University Methodist Church, who will announce the need for donations
through its newsletter. Universities Baptist Church, University
Presbyterian Church, and University Methodist Church will each receive
boxes; the other four churches have all declined the offer, as they
already have a method of collection in place. Only two or three Scouts
will be needed to oversee and manage this segment of the project. This
arrangement will give churchgoers the opportunity to donate to the
Inter-faith Council shelter, an organization already support by many
area
parishes. The boxes will be left at the churches for eight weeks during
the initial drive and checked on once a week by Scouts to give
parishioners ample opportunity for participation. If, during the
checkup, the boxes need to be emptied, the Scout checking them will be
responsible for taking the donations to the IFC Shelter. In most cases,
the church is willing to take the Scout donations to the Community
House, and checkups will be needed more infrequently. For this segment
of the project, boxes will be constructed from plywood, painted, and
stenciled in order to provide a permanent location for donations to the
IFC Homeless shelter. A Saturday in the last two weeks of September,
such as the l9th, will be set aside for a half dozen to a dozen Scouts
to get together at my house to construct and paint the boxes, and make
the poster board signs to be placed with them. The meeting for
construction should take about three hours, and something from 1 p.m.
to 4 p.m. will be set up. If not all construction can be completed on
that Saturday, then another few hours would be set aside to finish on
Sunday afternoon. Materials needed will be obtained through Home Depot
and include plywood, Liquid Nails, brads, and paint. The poster board
will be purchased from a store such as Hungates. The boxes will be
constructed of five 2'x 2' panels of l/~" plywood with 2"x 2" boards
glued along all eight seams and the top inner edge, before screws are
used to give a double hold among the panels. The method of construction
has been discussed with Gary Barnes, a family friend who has done
multiple wood working projects of this nature and who has concurred
with the method laid out above. The cost of materials for each box will
be under ten dollars, and will be paid for out of pocket. Necessary
tools for construction will be supplied by me, as well as any other
Scouts who come to assist the manufacture of the boxes. Three boxes
will be constructed for the three churches beginning collection of
materials for the IFC. In order to clarify and publicize the needs of
the project, a large poster board sign listing the needed donations
will be placed with each box. Such a sign will also be made to go with
the table outside of the Wal-Mart to assist in that method of
collection.
Materials needed for collection.and the quantities needed are as
follows:
• White athletic socks of all sizes - As many pairs as possible.
• Underwear for 30 men and 18 women - Sizes 34 to 46 for men - As many
pairs as is possible to be collected. All women's sizes can be used.
• T-shirts, either undershirts or with printing, of all sizes - As many
as possible.
• Bath towels, hand towels, and washcloths - As many towels as
possible. . Personal care items such as deodorant, shampoo,
toothbrushes/paste, etc. - As many items as possible.
• Sheets, both fitted and loose, and pillowcases for twin beds - Up to
30 sets.
• Pens, pencils, paper, crayons, and other school supplies for children
ten and under - Fewer than ten children needing school supplies.
• School backpacks for children - Less than ten backpacks are needed.
• Baby bags for mothers and expectant mothers - Three or less are
needed.
The collection of materials for the IFC will be continued beyond the
initial drive with the assistance of local churches. Churches will be
supplied with a list of goods that are needed by the IFC, and then the
churches will collect items off the list in addition to any other items
being collected for the IFC by the church. If no church collection were
being made, this drive will provide an impetus for these organizations
to start. This project is planned to begin in September, and end in
November, in order to avoid the very beginning of school as well as
exams later in the year. The period of intensive collection for this
drive will be eight weeks, in order to allow Scouts to go door to door
and to provide several weekends where a table will be set up outside
the New Hope Commons Wal-Mart. Boxes will be left with churches to
continue the drive indefinitely, along with any other donations the
church makes to the IFC. Boy Scout Troop 9 will be actively involved in
the drive for the initial eight-week period of the drive, and during
the project will establish a more permanent method of collection,
namely, the boxes used at the churches. The duty of continued
collection will fall to participating churches, which will make
announcements on a regular basis alerting parishioners to IFC needs.
These needs will be updated and forwarded to the churches on a regular
basis by a representative of the IFC in order to insure that current
needs will be met.
This project will require approximately 175 man hours worth of work: 75
hours working the table outside of Wal-Mart; 20 hours to construct the
boxes to be placed in churches; 50 hours to do the door-to-door supply
drive; and 30 hours to check on the three boxes for the initial
eight-week period.
Project design submitted by Michael Potter September 18, 1998
Notes:
My Eagle project was a supply drive for the Inter-Faith Council
Homeless Shelter on Rosemary Street in downtown Chapel Hill. This
project was worthwhile because it provided many of the supplies that
the IFC Shelter requires on a day to day basis, as well as establishing
a method for collecting those supplies in the future. The clothing,
linens, and toiletries donated to the shelter were given to the local
homeless, who otherwise would not receive these sorts of vital
supplies. The enduring benefit of this project lies in the setup of a
church donation program that continues to serve the IFC Shelter. In
each of the three churches, I have established a contact who has taken
the responsibility of checking on the boxes and continuing the donation
program to the IFC Shelter.
I conceived of this project myself and I contacted the shelter
originally in January
1998 to see what sorts of needs they had in terms of clothing. The idea
came to me when I was thinking about the sorts of services the Boy
Scouts provide already, and I remembered doing door to door food
drives. I then realized that no one was collecting the clothing,
sheets, and toiletries that the shelter also required, so I decided to
set up a local system to collect these needed donations. I worked out
the details in early 1998 with Robin Court at the IFC Homeless Shelter
and got her approval to start the project.
The collection of donations, which included clothing, sheets, towels,
and toiletries, was carried out in three ways: scouts solicited
donations outside of Wal-Mart, boxes were placed in churches, and
scouts went door to door collecting donations from neighbors. These
combined methods of collection netted over $ 7,000 worth of supplies
for the IFC Homeless Shelter, supplies which are required for the
shelter to function, but supplies that would not have been obtained any
other way. The $ 7,000 figure is calculated by considering the value of
a garbage bag full of clothing and other supplies to be $125 and
multiplying that number by the fifty-seven garbage bags collected. The
collection of these supplies was a much needed service that enable
shelter to more effectively carry out its mission of providing a place
to stay or meal for the homeless. The IFC Homeless Shelter relies
almost exclusively on donations of both money and supplies in order to
function and has a quite limited budget. The collection of clothing,
sheets, towels, and toiletries as my Eagle Project supplied the shelter
with items it needs to function, as well as providing a permanent
method of collection for those items. This allows the Shelter to better
budget its resources to serve the homeless
through the partial alleviation of this need for supplies.
The first method of collection was through solicitations outside of the
Wal-Mart in New Hope Commons. These donations were collected on four
different days: Saturday and Sunday, October 3 and 4, 1998 and Saturday
and Sunday, November 7 and 8, 1998. The Scouts worked six hours on
Saturday afternoon and four hours on Sunday afternoon. Ten individuals
helped to collect supplies through the Wal-Mart drive. These
ten individuals worked a total of forty-eight hours collecting supplies.
The second method of collection was a door to door drive in which
Scouts asked neighbors to purchase items needed off a list. The first
weekend of the drive when the Scouts dropped off the lists and
information was February 6 and 7, 1999. The scouts returned a week
later to pick up supplies purchased by neighbors.
The third method of collection was through area churches, and it
provided a permanent means to collect supplies for the IFC Homeless
Shelter. Scouts built, painted, and labeled three-foot square plywood
boxes that were placed in three area churches to provide locations for
donations to be left. The boxes were placed in the churches on October
17, 1998. The three churches involved are University Presbyterian
Church, where my contact is Ollie Wagner, University Baptist Church,
where my contact is Frank LeMaster, and University Methodist, where my
contact is Ron Gonia. These boxes remain in the churches to the present
and are checked on regularly by my contacts in the churches.
Though all these methods have provided many of the supplies the IFC
Homeless Shelter needs, there is still much that needs to be done. My
Eagle Project provided and continued to provide many of the supplies
needed, but a shortfall1 remains. Furthermore, my project focused only
on donations of clothing and toiletries in order to provide an unique
service for the project requirement, but the Boy Scouts must continue
their tradition of food drives to benefit this shelter, as well as
other establishments.
Assisted by:
For information on time spent by various individuals helping with
different segments of the project, see the enclosed Appendix A.
Changes:
- Rather than dealing with Angela Paris, the former Office Manager at
the IFC Homeless Shelter, as expected, I ended up working with the new
Office Manager, Robin Could because of an internal change at the
Shelter.
- I had planned to carry out the door to door drive in late November,
but because of scheduling issues with the Troop, the drive did not go
off until mid-December.
- The distribution of hours among those working the table at Wal-Mart
was altered slightly from the planned distribution because of
difficulties finding enough workers for a given shift or because of a
desire by some workers for more service hours.
- The announcement that was scheduled for October 11, 1998 at
University Presbyterian Church was not made until January 17, 1999
because of scheduling problems during the holiday season.
- The materials needed to build the church boxes cost slightly more
than estimated around fifteen dollars a box, rather than ten.
- The total number of hours needed to complete the project was
estimated at 175 but actually ended up being closer to 150 hours.
Materials:
The materials used in the project were lumber and other accessories
used to assemble the church boxes. The total cost of these materials
was approximately $50 and was paid for out of pocket.
Appendix A - Hours Worked
Wal~Mart Box Purchase, Assembly, Painting &
Delivery Wal-Mart
Name 10/3/98 10/ 4/98 10 /7/98 10/8/98 10/10198 10/17/98 10
/18/98 11/7/98 11/8/98 Church Pickup Door to Door Drive Total Names
Mike Potter 6.0 4.0 1.5 3.0 3.0 2.0
1.5 6.0 4.0 1.0
3.0 35.0 Mike Potter
John McKeon 0.0 0.0 0.0 00 0.0
0.0 0.0 0.0 0. 0
13.5 0.0 13.5 John McKeon
Daniel Potter 1 .0 0.5 0.0 3.5 2.5
0.5 0 0.5
0.5 2.0 3.0
13.5 Daniel Potter
Roy Kim 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.0
0.0 6.0
0.0 1.5 2.5 12.0 Roy Kim
Michael R. Potter 0.0 0.0 1.5 3.0
3.0 0.5 1.5 0.5
0.0 1.0 0.0 11.0 Michael R. Potter
Rob Painter 0.0
0.0
0.0 0.0 2.5
6.0 Rob Painter
T J Reeves 3.0 0.0
0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0 0
0.0 0.0
0.0 2.0 5.0 T J Reeves
Joan Potter 1.0
0.5 0.0 00 0.0 2.0 0.0
0.0 0.5 1.0
0.0 5.0 Joan Potter
Andrew Hoover 0.0 0.0
0.0 00 0.0 00 0.0
0.0 4 0 00
00 4.0 Andrew Hoover
Brian Garlington I 0.0 4.0
0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
0.0 0
0 0 0
0.0 4.0 Brian Garlington
Amos Shuman 3.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
0.0 0.0 0.0
0.0 0.0 3.0 Amos Shuman
Graham Paulsgrove 3 0 0 0 0 0 0
0 0 0.5 0 0 0
0 0.0 0 0 0
0 0.0 3.0 Graham Paulsgrove
Jeff Raub 0.0 0.0 0.0
0.0 3.0 0.0 0.0
0.0
0.0 0.0
0.0 3.0 Jeff Raub
Larry Reeves 00 0.0 0.0
0.0 0.0 0.0
0.0 2.0 2.0 Larry Reeves
Total 17.0 9.0 3.0 9.0 1 1 .5 9.0
3.0 13.0 9.0 22.5
14.0 120.0 Total
85.0 Total by Others
70.8% Percentage
Appendix B - My Time on Project
Date Type of Activity Hours Total
Hours Planning Hours
12/30/97 Initial Planning
1
2.2 2.2 2.2
1/16/98 Phone calls 0.3
2.5 2.5
1/26/98 Phone calls
0.3 2.7 2.7
2/18/98 Phone calls
0.3 3.0 3.0
3/15/98 Phone calls 0.3
3.2 3.2
4/13/98 Phone calls
0.3 3.5 3.5
5/28/98 Initial Discussion w/ IFC
1.5 5.0 5.0
6/6/98 Preliminary Outline 2.5
7.5 7.5
6/10/98 Rough Project Description
1.8 9.2 9.2
6/11 /98 Outline of Collection Needs
1.0 10.2 10.2
6/12/98 Phone calls 0.4
10.6 10
6/13/98 Phone calls 1.1
11.7 11.7
6/14/98 Phone calls 0.7
12.4 12.4
6/15/98 Fax of Eagle Project WB to LR
0.2 12.6 12.6
6/16/98 Update Project Description
1.3 13.9 13.9
6/17/98 Update Project Description
0.9 14.8 14.8
6/18/98 Meeting w/ IFC for signatures
0.6 15.4 15.4
6/18/98 Meeting w/ Ripperton 0.4
15.8 15.8
6/19/98 Meeting w/Verne 0.7
16.5 16.5
6/20/98 Update Project Description
1.3 17.8 17.8
7/14/98 Letter to Wal-Mart
0.9 18.7 18.7
7/16/98 Phone calls 0.4
19.1 19.1
7/17/98 Phone calls 1.9
21.0 21.0
7/18/98 Phone calls
1.4 22.4 22.4
8/3/98 Phone calls 1.2
23.6 23.6
8/4/98 Update Project Description
0.6 24.2 24.2
8/22/98 Conversation w/ Verne 0.3
24.4 24.4
8/26/98 Phone calls 1.0
25.4 25.4
8/27/98 Church Announcement - UPC
0.9 26.3 26.3
9/10/98 Phone calls 0.6
26.9 26.9
9/15/98 Update Project Description
0.5 27.4 27.4
9/18/98 Conversation w/Verne 0.3
27.7 27.7
9/19/98 Meeting w/ Verne 0.4
28.1 28.1
XXXXXX Beginning of Project XXXXXXXXXXXXX
Project Hours
9/23/98 Prepare Shopping List for
Boxes 0.2
28.3 0.2
9/27/98 Calls to Wal-Mart Scouts
1.3 29.6 1.5
9/28/98 Calls to Wal-Mart Scouts
0.3 29.8 1.8
9/29/98 Phone calls
0.4 30.2 2.2
10/3/98 Work at Wal-Mart 6.0
36.2 8.2
10/4/98 Work at Wal-Mart 1 4.0
40.2 12.2
10/5/98 Phone calls 1 0.21
40.4 12.4
10/7/98 Pick Up Lumber 1.51
41.9 13.9
10/8/98 Work on Box Manufacture
3.01 44.9 16.9
10/9/98 Phone calls 1
0.1 45.01 17.0
10/10/98 Work on Box Manufacture
3.0 48.0 | 20.0
10/14/98 Phone calls 0.3
48.3 20.3
10/16/98 Phone calls 0.2
48.5 20.5
10/17/98 Painting of Boxes 2.0
50.5 22.5
10/18/98 Phone calls 0.6
51.1 23.1
10/18/98 Delivery of Boxes 1.5
52.6 24.6
10/22/98 Phone calls 0.2
52.8 24.8
10/25/98 Church Pick-Up
1.0 53.8 25.8
10/29/98 Phone calls 0.1
53.9 25.9
10/30/98 Phone calls 0.7
54.6 26.6
11/7/98 Phone calls 0.5
55.1 27.1
11/7/98 Work at Wal-Mart 6.0
61.1 33.1
11/8/98 Phone calls 0.4
61.5 33.5
11/8/98 Work at Wal-Mart 4.0
65.5 37.5
11115/98 Phone Calls 0.3
65.8 37.7
11/21/98 Phone calls 0.2
66.0 37.9
11/24/98 Phone calls 0.1
66.1 38.0
12/7/98 Prepare for DTD Drive
0.9 67.0 38.9
12/8/98 Prepare for DTD Drive 0.3
67.3 39.2
12/8/98 Instructions to Scouts for
DTD 0.2
67.5 39.4
12/10/98 Phone calls
0.4 67.9 39.8
12/12/98 Door to door collection
3.0 70.9 42.8
1/5/99 Phone calls 0.2
71.1 43.0
1/19/99 Phone calls 0.1
71.2 43.1
1/24/99 Phone calls 0.2
71.4 43.3
2/2/99 Prepare for DTD Drive 0.5
71.9 43.8
2/23/99 Phone calls 0.1
72.0 43.9
3/4/99 Phone calls 0.4
72.4 44.3
3/16/99 Phone calls 0.3
72.7 44.6
3/25/99 Phone calls 0.1
72.81 44.7
4/3/99 Phone calls 0.2
73.0 44.9
4/10/99 Phone calls 0.2
73.2 45.1
Total Collected
Door to Door Drive 6 garbage. bags
Wal-Mart 20 garbage. bags
Churches (TTD) 31 garbage. bags
Total Collected (TTD) 57 garbage. bags
Total Value (TTD) $7,125.00
Percentage Planning 38.3%
Percentage Working 61.7%
