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Community Corner

VIDEO: Kids 4 Japan Helping Clothe Disaster Survivors

Three local youngsters and their mom started a charity to collect clothing to send overseas to survivors of the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan after watching news reports chronicling the plight of many of the victims.

When Danvers photographer Lauren Poussard relayed the details of last month’s devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan to her three children: Zoe, 11, Elodie, 8, and Freddie, 7, something kind of magical happened — they took action.

Lauren said one-by-one they disappeared into their rooms, rifling through drawers in an effort to come up with clothing for the children of Japan who have lost everything. Before long, they had filled an entire bag and wanted desperately to get the clothing in the hands of people who needed it most: the children of Japan.

What happens when three philanthropic kids and one motivated mom come together with one great idea? Kids 4 Japan.

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Little by little, as Lauren conveyed to family, friends and neighbors her pride at the children’s good deed, donations began rolling in by the bagfuls, she said. Now with a Facebook page, Twitter account, collection boxes in three locations, a logo design and T-shirts for sale, the Poussards find themselves spearheading a major charity and clothing drive agenda, with the needs of the people of Japan in their hearts and minds.

The T-shirts for sale were printed by Michael Pelonzi, owner of , and Lauren said that after searching online, she discovered the owner of a mail delivery service in the area was willing to donate the shipping costs for people who sent aid packages full of clothing or other necessities to Japan. Considering the amount of boxes they’ll be sending, Lauren asks that anyone who does donate clothing to the cause, chip in a few dollars or buy a T-shirt to help cover that expense.

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To make a donation, drop off new or gently used clothing to these three Danvers locations:

  • , 20 Locust St.
  • Eastern Bank, 4 Liberty Dr.
  • , 30 Oberlin Rd.

Lauren had initially taken portrait photos of her friend, renowned Japanese calligrapher Michito Imai, to sell and donate 100 percent of the proceeds to relief efforts in Japan. The prints are $99 each. And once the full-fledged charity organization began with her family, Lauren just added the portrait sales in as another way to support the overall effort.

For more information on the portrait photos, contact Lauren Poussard at lpoussard@msn.com or www.laurenpoussard.com.

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