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With the start of the school year, there is always a renewed need for items for our local children. MICA’s 2008 Humanitarian of the Year, Karen Saeks, has been working all summer collecting items to be placed in her Bedtime Bundles.

Something that she is in desperate need of and which has not been easy to come by is climate controlled storage.

For the past year, Karen has stored donated items and assembled bundles in a hot garage, certainly not the best location in which to work and to keep preciously donated items for the children. If you have air-conditioned space that you would be willing to donate to a most worthy cause, please call Karen Saeks at 398-5179 or e-mail her at karen@bedtimebundles.org.

Working with the migrant farm community, MICA’s Humanitarian has also brought to our attention a food pantry that recently started at Manatee Elementary School. Needless to say, they need everything.

With the economy being as tight as it is for everyone, countrywide, imagine how tight it must be for those who were not making much to begin with. Please consider donating gift cards from Publix, Winn Dixie or Walmart in any amount (but best in $25 increments) so families can purchase what they need.

Karen Saeks recently stated that “the situation here is critical. There is no work, no money and that equals no food. This is America and we have hungry, malnourished children in East Naples.”

Take your gift cards, school supplies or nonperishable foods to Carmen Fontdevila at Manatee Elementary School, 1880 Manatee Road, Naples, Fl. 34114. If you have questions, please call Carmen at 377-7600.

And speaking of Bedtime Bundles, what is in one? Of course, what’s placed in a bundle is based upon the age you are targeting. Diapers or pull ups, baby wipes, powder, pacifier, toothbrush and toothpaste, soap and shampoo, wash cloth and towel, pajamas, socks, underwear, sweatshirt or sweater, blanket or throw, and a book, toy or stuffed animal are all in a typical Bedtime Bundle. Join your friends and neighbors who have already given “Bundles.” Fill a new or gently-used pillowcase with the above appropriate items for children ranging from infants through 17 years of age, either boy or girl.

If you don’t have time to shop, you can still help. You can send a check or gift cards to Bedtime Bundles, 1061 South Collier Blvd., Unit 501, Marco Island, Fl. 34145.

Gift certificates may be purchased at any of the following locations: Publix, Wynn Dixie, CVS, Walgreens, Bealls, Target, KMart or Wal-Mart.

Please feel free to drop your bundle or donation at the MICA office at 1770 San Marco Road, Unit 204, or call Karen Saeks to arrange for pickup at 398-5179.

The “Bundles” are given to children in East Naples, whose parents are typically farm workers.

MICA names its “Humanitarian of the Year” each January at its annual meeting. Do you know a resident of Marco Island who is an unsung hero? Someone who takes great steps to help those less fortunate or in need of a helping hand? Please call the MICA office at 642-7778 and share this special person’s name with us.