Special Operations, Ridgeway
Clothing in schools near Ridgeway
Clothing stores set up inside the schools and kept stocked with new coats, socks and underwear.
Matt coordinates directly with school nurses on what is running out. Bought locally, sized correctly, new. Not a donation bin and not somebody's cast off.
“We do not want students worrying about having clothes to wear to school when they should be able to focus on their education.”
A winter coat that fits, and the socks and underwear nobody thinks to donate.
Families near Ridgeway
We help families in Ridgeway and the areas around it. Operation Children First works through partner elementary schools in Kenai and Soldotna, on either side of Ridgeway.
There are no names, no stories and no judgment. The school nurse keeps a list of what is needed, Operation Children First buys it new, and it is handed over quietly at school. A family is never asked to tell its story to qualify.
Money raised here stays here. In Matt Brown's words, donations raised in Soldotna stay in Soldotna, and contributions from the Kenai area go back into the Kenai area.
Questions people ask
What does Operation Children First do near Ridgeway?
Clothing stores set up inside the schools and kept stocked with new coats, socks and underwear. Operation Children First works through partner elementary schools in Kenai and Soldotna, on either side of Ridgeway.
How does a child near Ridgeway get help from Operation Children First?
Through the school. There are no names, no stories and no judgment. The school nurse keeps a list of what is needed, Operation Children First buys it new, and it is handed over quietly at school. A family is never asked to tell its story to qualify.
Does a gift from Ridgeway stay in Ridgeway?
Yes. Money raised here stays here. In Matt Brown's words, donations raised in Soldotna stay in Soldotna, and contributions from the Kenai area go back into the Kenai area. Nothing goes to a head office or another state.
How do I give to clothing in schools from Ridgeway?
Open the Support a child page, pick Venmo, PayPal or Cash App, and write Clothing in the note before you send. That one word is how the gift gets counted toward clothing in schools instead of the general pile.
Is Operation Children First a real nonprofit?
Yes. Operation Children First is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Kenai, Alaska, EIN 84-3299344, started by Matt Brown of Soldotna. It gets coats, socks, hygiene supplies, Thanksgiving meals and Christmas gifts to children on the central Kenai Peninsula through their own schools.
Support a child near Ridgeway
Write Clothing in the note so the gift counts toward clothing in schools.