Bushwick Observer, May 2001 (condensed)
Non-Profit Tools for Schools Seeks Bushwick Volunteers
In the wake of budget cutbacks, members of Tools for Schools
are hastening to assure teachers in need that there is still a place in the
neighborhood where they can receive supplies.
Tools for Schools (TFS) is a non-profit organization founded
in 1993 by Janice Hepburn. Ms. Hepburn, . . . was working for a Fortune
500 corporation . . . setting up a network within the company
to collect material that would otherwise have been thrown away and completely
wasted. . . . By this time, Ms. Hepburn saw the
potential value not only of recycling office material but of getting it into
schools. After seriously considering her options and risks, she left her job
. . .
"Teachers have compromised themselves into believing this is
how it has to be, that insufficient chairs, and broken file cabinets are the
norm, said Ms. Hepburn. "We’re changing that."
..., TFS has provided the valuable service of
providing used office furniture and computers to schools and not-for-profit
organizations in need. While the program has expanded and changed over the
years, its core mission has remained the same, to create constructive
alternatives to throwing out excess re-useables. . .
Last fall, . . . PS 145 effectively
coordinated the donation of 16 file cabinets on a Saturday. With the help of
volunteers, all files were put in place and it was business as usual on Monday. Tools for Schools has also helped PS 45, PS 106, IS 111, PS 123, PS 145, PS 151,
IS 383, and PS 384 (in this particular community).
As a not-for-profit organization the program relies on
donations and fundraisers to keep its doors open and volunteers to get the job
done. . . .
To volunteer or for more information about the program, call
(917) 250 6200.
