NEW ORLEANS - This past Saturday, KIPP New Orleans Schools (KNOS) partnered with Louisiana State Representatives Royce Duplessis and Matthew Willard, Booker T. Washington High School (BTW) Alumni & Friends, and John F. Kennedy Senior High School (JFK) Alumni Network to organize toy giveaways to support the community. Hosted in the Gentilly and Uptown neighborhoods, over 400 toys were given out.
KNOS Chief Strategy Officer Joey LaRoche said, “We are proud to work with community stakeholders to bring some holiday cheer to New Orleans. This is a great opportunity for us to give back to the wonderful families in our city and continues our commitment of providing resources to the young people of New Orleans. We are grateful for our incredible partners and look forward to more opportunities to support the community.”
Engaging key stakeholders, KNOS is proud to have collaborated with Louisiana State Reps Duplessis and Willard to give back to the community during this holiday season. In their respective districts, Duplessis and Willard have been instrumental supporters in the work KNOS is doing to create academically excellent schools and provide unlimited opportunity to every student in New Orleans.
Additionally, KNOS partnered with local community churches to house the toy giveaways including Israelite Baptist Church and St. Leo/St. Raymond Church.
“2020 has been an extremely difficult year for children and families,” said Louisiana State Rep. Duplessis. “During this holiday season, we want to add a little bit of joy to the lives of our young people, who have endured so much. Thank you to KIPP New Orleans Schools and the Israelite Baptist Church for their partnership and service.”
“This is going to be a very difficult holiday season for many New Orleans’ children. I’m proud to be apart of a community that rises to the occasion to help others,” said Louisiana State Rep. Willard. “Thank you to everyone who donated toys, and I want to send a special thanks to KIPP New Orleans and the Munch Factory for brightening up this holiday season for so many of our kids.”
In addition to receiving great toys, families also learned about the KIPP New Orleans schools in the area; KIPP Central City Primary, KIPP Central City Academy and Booker T. Washington High School are located Uptown and KIPP Believe and John F. Kennedy High School are located in Gentilly. Attendees learned about the programs offered, services provided, and academic & extracurricular success achieved.
At our schools, we provide services for students to and through college and careers. This gives students the support needed to ensure they are connected to real opportunities post-high school. Additionally, we create engaging and fun learning environments offering arts, sciences, sports, access to technology and award-winning extracurricular activities. While observing COVID health standards, our high performing schools are open to all students in New Orleans. Families are encouraged to apply now at EnrollNOLA.org.
“On behalf of the alumni of Booker T. Washington High School, we are proud to partner with KIPP New Orleans Schools to give back to the Uptown community,” said BTW Alumni & Friends President Wayne Jones. “With all that’s going on with COVID, our families need a reason to celebrate. For us, this is about more than a toy giveaway. It’s an opportunity for us to spread holiday cheer during this difficult time.”
“The John F. Kennedy Senior High School Alumni Network is excited to collaborate with KIPP New Orleans Schools to help the community in this way,” said JFK Alumni Network President Tiger Watson. “This toy giveaway adds holiday spirit and love to our Gentilly neighborhood in a wonderful way. We are grateful to be able to support our families in this special way.”
Additionally, on Sunday, December 20th, KNOS also partnered with New Orleans City Councilmember Cyndi Nguyen for a toy giveaway in New Orleans East. Hosted at the Optimus Entertainment, they welcomed over 500 families.
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