In the D.C. Metropolitan area, 42% of students experience poverty and have their natural gifts and abilities muted because their shoes do not fit, their clothes are too small, they do not have the eyeglasses they need to see the board, or stubborn toothaches drown out the voice of the teacher.
Each year, NCCF distributes over $2,000,000 in goods and services to students in need. These items include brand new coats, school uniforms, shoes, school supplies, bedding, grocery store gift cards, personal hygiene products, laptops, and medical, vision, and dental care. With your support, we can provide basic essentials and remove the barriers of poverty. Together, we can help students benefit from a quality education that will define their future.
Mr. Tom Cookerly founded TNK (The Neediest Kids) program in 1972 while General Manager of WJLA-TV to help young people who, through no fault of their own, could not reach their full potential because they needed glasses, hearing aids, shoes or coats. More than 50 years later his legacy lives on serving over 40,000 school children in 10 school districts annually.
We need your support to ensure that all youth have the same shot at becoming economic contributors to our community. TNK is funded SOLELY by individuals and corporations who make a direct impact on these barriers.
TNK partners with 10 regional school districts with a total body of 800,000 students across 1,140 schools and educational facilities.
Local Businesses and Community Leaders Invested in the Region’s Schools
NCCF has assembled a group of prominent local businesses and community leaders to join the TNK Ambassadors Program in order to directly help address childhood poverty in the Washington Metropolitan Area by working to provide low-income and homeless students across the DMV area with basic necessities that will allow them to achieve academic success.
If you are interested in becoming an Ambassador, please contact us by clicking below. We are excited to welcome you.
Jermaine Lemons
