Backpacks of Love program comes to Kent

He said he’s had experience, both personal and professional, with the foster care system.

A court-appointed special advocate in Anne Arundel County, he started The Blue Ribbon Project in 2013 and it has expanded throughout Charles and Queen Anne’s counties.

The Blue Ribbon Project focuses on children and adults who have suffered abuse, and provides programs and support for those victims. The Backpacks of Love program is centered on those children who are removed from their homes due to unsafe conditions.

“They’d be in their pajamas when they enter care, holding a plastic bag that held markers and that was basically it,” Pyles said. “I talked to some of the foster parents and found how horrendous their condition is coming in.”

In the Backpacks of Love program, he said, the packs are filled with “emergency essentials,” such as clothing, toothbrush and toothpaste, shampoo, a stuffed animal and more.

The backpacks and their contents are gender specific, and can be tailored for any age, from newborns up to 17 years old.

For Kent County, the backpacks will be stored at the Department of Social Services office and distributed to any child who is leaving his or her home under duress.

“I’ve never really realized the need was out there for these kids who are going into care, until you begin to see it firsthand,” Pyles said.

He also presented an award plaque to DSS for their participation in the program.

Kent County Circuit Court Judge Paul Bowman said he appreciated the work Pyles and his organization do.

“It’s amazing what something like this does to a child’s life, so that they can see a ray of hope appear,” he said.

In a follow-up email, DSS Director Linda Webb wrote that Pyles delivered 36 backpacks to DSS’s office to be distributed when needed.

“We have them for both boys and girls, across a broad range of ages,” she wrote.

For more information about Backpacks of Love and The Blue Ribbon Project, visit www.blueribbonproject.org/index.php.