AROUND THE PARK AGAIN by Sharon Lee Tegler
Hearing pure joy in the voices of staffers from the Child Protective Services of Sutton, West Virginia made the trip volunteers Steve and Linda Zahn began six hours earlier totally worth it. They’d just delivered a donation of 500 boxes of winter clothing from Orphan Grain Train.
“West Virginia, here we come,” Linda had thought as she climbed into the passenger seat of the largest truck Orphan Grain Train was able to rent. Behind the wheel, husband Steve put pedal to the metal and they were off.
A large truck was necessary because the one owned by Orphan Grain Train wasn’t big enough to accommodate the 500 boxes of clothes and an additional 250 coats they were transporting.
The Maryland branch of Orphan Grain Train – a Christian volunteer network that ships donated food, clothing, medical and other items to people in need nationally and internationally – is located at 621 East West Boulevard in Millersville. Initially slowed down by the COVID-19 pandemic because they couldn’t come into the warehouse, volunteers quickly switched to making masks, scrub caps and headbands for nurses from their homes.
Soon, the non-profit resumed accepting donations from individuals in the community, consignment stores or shops and major businesses. (Most recently, they received handmade blankets, children’s toys and books through a Passport To Serve outreach program of the Anne Arundel County Chick-fil-A’s.) All donations are quarantined and sanitized in OGT’s warehouse using social distancing protocols.
Realizing that the warehouse now had an ample supply of winter clothing to donate, the Zahns volunteered to head a project to find an in-country recipient – preferably one in an economically deprived area. Following their research and a few phone calls, the couple settled on donating the clothing to the Child Protective Services in Sutton, West Virginia which serves the districts of Braxton County, Lewis County and Upshur County.
Sutton, a town of 940 people, is the Braxton county seat. According to the 2010 census, the county is home to 14,702 people with 22% of the population below the poverty line. The surrounding counties of Lewis and Upshur have similar demographics.
Child Protective Services representative Cathy George said the agency serves children from birth to 18 years of age. Having expressed the agency’s gratitude for being chosen a recipient, George made arrangements to receive the shipment at Braxton County High School.
Crossing from Maryland into West Virginia was encouraging because it meant the Zahns were two-thirds of the way to their destination.
Pulling up next to Braxton High School to unload their cargo, they were met by six staff members from the Child Protective Services of Braxton County. Luckily, the school had donated a room in which to stow the large shipment.
“The staff was thrilled to see us,” Linda reported. “They said nothing like this had ever happened to them.”
They all pitched in at once but there was a tremendous amount to unload. Shuttling it inside and stacking it was yet another matter. One of the best things about the shipment is that the clothing arrived in time for Christmas.
Unloading the precious cargo took quite a while. 
Child Protective Services representative Robin and staff shuttled all 500 boxes into a room donated by Braxton County High School where they were then neatly stacked.
For the Zahns, the winter clothing/coat drive project and its satisfactory conclusion were immensely rewarding. But there’s so much more to do.
At the moment, Orphan Grain Train is preparing a shipment of items like desks, medical equipment, books and supplies for clinics that is bound for Liberia. Though not personally delivered, international shipments are rewarding too. The organization recently received a letter of gratitude from South Sudan that included a photo of kids there wearing uniforms donated to OGT by Severna Park High School. The people of South Sudan have little access to education, medical care and basic necessities and recently suffered flooding from the Nile River.
International projects like the South Sudan effort are an OGT hallmark. However, there is currently considerable need domestically. The Zahns believe the charity should devote more time and resources to communities nearer home, particularly since the cost of shipping donations internationally has risen dramatically to thousands of dollars.
“It would also be good to attract some younger volunteers like those from Annapolis Christian School who help us out while earning service learning points,” Linda Zahn said. For information about the non-profit or to make a donation, visit Orphan Grain Train | Passporttoserve. or call (410) 647-1621.
Garry’s Grill plans a “Polar Bear Plunge” of a different sort
The polar bear was seen warming up in Eddie Conway’s living room for Garry’s Grill and Catering’s “Polar Bear Plunge” benefiting Special Olympics on Saturday, January 30 from 8 am till 4 pm.
The local business community is joining forces to give back for the community support they’ve received. Every hour, a different business will take over the Garry’s Grill Polar Bear Plunge Dunk Tank in a heated tent on the patio beside the restaurant. Conway will be in the tank for Garry’s Grill from 1 to 2 pm.
Some other businesses taking turns in the tank include Rita’s Italian Ice, The Big Bean, Mahon Landscaping, Kevin Gattie Financial, Landmark Roofing, Larry Sells Consulting, the Matt Wyble Real Estate Team, Savvy Consignment, Kaycie Quinones, Severna Park Lanes and Rockwell Fitness. Come out and support your favorites and try out your arm. You get 3 tries for $10 to send someone into the tank while raising money for Special Olympics
You can also click Check out Garry’s Grill’s team fundraising page for Special Olympics Maryland (somd.org) for another way to support Special Olympics.
Boy Scout Troop #192 sponsoring a Clothing Drive at Historic Baldwin Hall
Boy Scout Troop #192 is sponsoring a Clothing Drive to be held at Historic Baldwin Hall on Sunday, January 31 from noon till 3 pm. The scouts are requesting that people bring their donations of clean gently used clothing wrapped in white kitchen -sized trash bags. According to Janice Crowe, president of the Trustees of Historic Badwin Hall, boys and girls from the troop, which is a brand new one, will be on hand to collect the bags. For more information, email janice.a.crowe@comcast.net.
Greater Severna Park and Arnold Chamber Blood Drive
On Friday, January 29, the Greater Severna Park and Arnold Chamber will host a blood drive at their offices at 1 Holly Avenue at 10 am. Anne Arundel Medical Center is bringing a mobile unit. Chamber CEO Liz League said the organization will take a picture of each donor and post and tag their businesses on social media. For information visit Greater Severna Park & Arnold Chamber of Commerce | Facebook.
