Greensburg family event will offer activities, essentials for kids in need

Families and children in need will be offered some essential items at no charge Aug. 9 at Courthouse Square in downtown Greensburg.

Latrobe-based Faith Forward Ministries will distribute the items and provide other family-oriented resources and children’s activities during the Community Supporting Family event, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Main and Otterman streets.

“There will be diapers, socks and toys, and little things that children need from (newborn) to 8 or 9 years old,” said Dawn Hennessey, Faith Forward executive director.

Back-to-school supplies also will be featured, along with food and games.

While Faith Forward has become known for annual Project Stand picnics that have offered encouragement in the struggle against substance addiction, Hennessey said the Aug. 9 event marks a shift toward organizing a series of smaller events in communities within its service area.

“We want to try something a little different, to let the community be more involved within their own area and make it a little more specific,” Hennessey said of the event.

Those who would like to donate new items for distribution should contact Faith Forward at faithforwardpa@gmail.com or 724-539-7900.

The event is being presented in conjunction with two other programs that operate under the umbrella of the faith-based human services organization — Angel Arms, which offers support services and counseling for children born into addiction and their caregivers, and Greater Things of Greensburg, which has a mission of providing for the homeless and others in need.

A recent Project Stand event attracted about 200 people to Roosevelt Park in Arnold, Hennessey said. The group is planning an indoor version of Project Stand for next winter, she said.