Senior Mary Katherine Polasky is leading the House of Hope Joy Drive at NDA to bring joy to youth experiencing homelessness in Green Bay.

“The Joy Drive was created by the Brown County Youth Action Board (BCYAB), and it is intended to collect items beyond basic necessities to bring joy to our youth experiencing homelessness,” explained Polasky, who is a youth advocate for House of Hope.

Craft kits, sports equipment, and board games are some of the suggested donation items. There is also an Amazon wish list that donors can access by scanning a QR code. All items will be given to youth who are staying at House of Hope. Donations are due January 26th, and students can drop them off at the box in the atrium.

“I really do not have an expected number of how many donations we will receive. It is up to everyone to decide what they want to donate,” commented Polasky.

House of Hope is a local homeless shelter that provides emergency shelter and housing stability programs for young parents and their children. Their mission is to “provide a safe and supportive environment where young parents and children facing housing instability can become confident, independent, and successful members of our community.”

Polasky got involved with the drive last year after Federico Auricchio brought it to NDA. Both Polasky and Auricchio were advocates together, and she decided to keep the drive going.

Drop-off boxes can be seen at multiple schools and local businesses in the community. With the help of Christian Dory, who is the Director of Career Explorations at NDA, Polasky has been busy “emailing and asking businesses if they are willing to host boxes for the drive.”