Sandwiched right in the middle of the holiday season, the Guardian ad Litem’s Peanut Butter & Jelly campaign could have been lost, but word spread of the group’s mission to bring awareness of what they do while helping others — and the community ate it up.
For Kenneth Chambers, Guardian ad Litem (GAL) supervisor in Sampson, it was the second Peanut Butter & Jelly Campaign he’s led, and he reported that the collection surpassed the previous year’s total.
“This is my second year helping with this campaign here in Sampson County and I/m happy to report that we did even better this go around,” said Chambers. “
It was GAL’s fourth annual Peanut Butter & Jelly Campaign, through which boxes were placed at locations across Sampson County to collect plastic jars of the namesake condiments. They remained at those locations — they included Sampson Community College, The Sampson Independent, the NC Justice Academy and Professional Eye Care, as well as several local churches — for approximately two months.
Chambers collected most of them at the end of last week.
Last year (Nov. 18 – Jan. 19), the campaign netted 215 jars of peanut butter and jelly. This year (November 2019 – January 2020), there were 275 jars collected, according to Chambers.
“I will be distributing the PB&J starting (this) week to the food banks, soup kitchens and shelters in Sampson County,” he stated. “All items collected will stay local. I just want to thank all of those individuals and business that donated PB&J for this cause, or allowed to place a collection box in their business or church.”
While collecting food for a good cause, the GAL’s Peanut Butter & Jelly Campaign sought to spread awareness of the Guardians’ mission. The GAL program sets out to help give foster children a voice in Department of Social Services’ court cases. The volunteers are advocates for those children in the community, giving them a voice in court.
A guardian can serve on a child’s case until a permanent solution has been approved. Sometimes these cases can take at least a year before a permanent plan is set. The GAL program in Sampson County is part of the Fourth Prosecutorial District, which also covers Duplin, Onslow and Jones counties
Leading up to this year’s PB&J campaign, Chambers expressed his wish for every foster child in Sampson to have a guardian. There are roughly 100 cases in the county. Current GAL volunteers tally just 25.
Volunteers must be at least 18 years old. The GAL program does criminal and background checks on all their volunteers to make sure no child is put in harm’s way. Volunteers are required to complete 30 hours of training, which would be provided by the program. That training helps volunteers learn how to become advocates.
For more information onthe GAL program, or to volunteer, visit www.volunteerforGAL.org.