Americans Helping Americans

Basic needs:holiday food: families in extreme poverty will often forgo planned saving just to have a traditional thanksgiving or holiday dinner. Parents, who want the best for their children, will spend more than they can afford to give their family some semblance of normalcy. It's a phenomenon aha and our field partners see every holiday season which is why more evictions happen around those times as families no longer have any savings to pay bills. Aha awarded $40,400 for holiday food, allowing 15,436 individuals to have a holiday meal. Thanksgiving and other holiday gatherings are hosted by field partners with volunteers to assist in inviting and serving the whole community. (see schedule o for continuation)approximately $11,500 in grants were awarded to field partners to provide basic support to their constituents which includes hygiene and sanitation items, feminine and baby care, and purchasing any type of health item needed that often gets overlooked when living in extreme poverty.summer camps and feeding program: in fiscal year 2023, aha continued to assist the children even after they exited the school system for the summer by sponsoring summer feeding programs and summer camps. At aha sponsored summer camps, children were able to continue education, prevent summer brain drain, make new friends, and learn new valuable life skills. Parents were able to continue working to provide for the family while their child was taken care of. Aha makes summer camp, which usually would be expensive, accessible through $19,000 total grants to partners allowing 124 campers to attend.utilities: one in six appalachian residents live below the poverty line. People in 56 out of 420 counties within appalachia have a median income of $36,000. This haunting fact makes paying mortgage, rent, and utilities a daunting task for these Americans. Even if tenants pay rent, landlords will evict tenants who have their utilities cut off fearing that pipes on their properties could freeze and burst in unheated apartments. Landlords also fear that if a tenant can't pay their electric bill that month, they may not be able to pay their rent the next. Parents could temporarily lose custody of their children as state human services agencies will not allow children to remain in a home without utilities. Electricity is required for oxygen concentrators, dialysis machines, feeding equipment and treatment of many other chronic illnesses. Without utilities, poor families will sink deeper into poverty. Also, aha donated 2,450 dental kits to help children continue proper oral care equipped with toothbrushes, toothpaste, floss, a timer, and two-week brushing calendar. 1,853 kids' coats, 950 adults' coats, and 2,000 blankets were distributed so that residents will stay warm. 259 shoes were given to children, many of whom received their 1st ever new shoe. Finally, 9,815 food boxes were delivered last year with each box weighing 35lbs and ensuring a family of four food for a week.americans Helping Americans sponsors gardening programs providing $62,940 in grants. The puckett community garden in beattyville ensures elderly and homeless in the community each get fresh vegetables to eat as well as teach the art of canning to children. Produce was distributed to 800 individuals this year with a $7,500 grant. Sprouting hope's homegrown program in mario, va is sponsored by a $45,440 grant which helped 23 families start a backyard produce garden in their home. This program has grown over the three years of restarting it, gaining more public interest and more sponsored staff required. Lastly, with a pilot grant to an individual in lee county, 100 individuals were taught how to build, maintain, and get results from a custom made hydroponic garden.

Housing/shelter:working with local and national volunteers, aha assisted 70 home renovation/repair projects for low-income families, elderly, and disabled individuals. Aha staff and partner organizations have witnessed firsthand homes without roofs, missing walls, and huge holes in the walls and floors of homes within central appalachia. This frightening fact is why aha sponsors trained volunteer groups every year to assist with home repairs. The work can be extensive and includes digging drains, replacing foundations, constructing wheelchair ramps, repairing roofs and walls, replacing jousts underneath kitchens and bathrooms, and renovating bathrooms to keep sanitation high. (see schedule o for continuation)aha sees this as a need and for that, awarded $69,500 total grants to partners in west Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, and Kentucky.

Education program:vocational training support: allowing students to train for specific skills is an important way to help an individual escape poverty. Aha sponsors tutors at the west Virginia career and technology center in mcdowell county, the only vocational school in the county, to teach students law, video game design, and mechanical engineering to name a few studies. Students are helped with their coursework by tutors to pass their main high school courses and mentored throughout the vocational school training, ensuring they pass their tests. This program would not exist without $12,000 of aha funding assisting 315 individuals. (see schedule o for continuation)after school and education supplies support: early childhood education remains a critical need with 30% of adults considered functionally illiterate. To ensure the youth receives the support they need to perform well in school, aha provided 4,992 back packs filled with school supplies as well as delivering custom school supplies to schools in extreme poverty areas, valuing $119,081.5 to 4 schools, in Mississippi, Pennsylvania, new york and north carolina meeting the needs of their entire student body. Aha also sponsored after school programs which provided healthy meals and tutoring services with $28,500 in grants assisting 360 children. Digital divide: aha provided 30 laptop computers to beattyville elementary in lee county Kentucky for students to take home and continue their education from home. Many roads in beattyville are loose gravel and when snowstorms come through depositing several inches, those roads do not get cleared leaving families stranded and schools closed. In order to stay on top of their education, these laptop computers are connected with the teacher so students can continue to learn. Students are also able to use the computers to connect with their parents who could be serving in the military overseas or research interesting careers they may want to pursue. Parents can use the computers to apply for jobs online as well.