Spring Service: Why We Serve
Project 351 is a community of young leaders with big hearts and caring spirits.
You know that every child needs love and support to help them grow, learn, and lead. As a community, we are particularly committed to serve children who are in extreme circumstances, such as poverty and homelessness.
Our Spring Service is dedicated to the mission of Cradles to Crayons (C2C), a beloved partner of Project 351 since 2011. We are honored to support C2C in their vital work to provide every child with the essentials they need to feel safe, warm, ready to learn, and valued.
Establishing a“why” of service is fundamental to Project 351 service. In order to serve meaningful with communities, we must understand the issues behind our service. Please read below to learn about the issues that we are addressing by serving children in partnership with Cradles to Crayons.
Poverty in Massachusetts
664,000 of our neighbors in Massachusetts fall below the poverty line.
1 in 8 children in Massachusetts live in households with very low incomes—that’s 182,000 children.
Nationally, 1 in 6—or 12.9 million children—live below the poverty line.
(Source: Annie E. Casey Foundation)
Homelessness in Massachusetts
The number of homeless families in Massachusetts increased 94% between 2007-2018.
(Source: US Department of Housing and Urban Development)
Last year, 20,929 public school students experienced homelessness.
(Source: United States Interagency Council on Homelessness)
When a family enters a shelter, they are only allowed two bags of belongings—total.
(Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development)
