CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW) – YAIPaks Outreach is a local nonprofit organization serving the homeless and others in need. YAI (an acronym for You Are Important) began in Clarksville as a way to remind the homeless the community cares for them.
Sherry Nicholson, founder and CEO of YAIPaks, sat down with ClarksvilleNow for the recent edition of Giving Grace to highlight the organization’s recent accomplishments.
Nicholson said she wanted those who are homeless to know people care about them. “We have a message that we want to leave with all of the homeless that we encounter that they are important. They are important to us and that their life still matters,” said Nicholson.
Nicholson added it’s important not to stereotype the homeless as lazy, because it’s so far from the truth of who they really are.
Talking about the homeless situation in Clarksville-Montgomery County, Nicholson said many are veterans or elderly and they can be found behind businesses, in the woods, and in parks trying to find a place out of the elements.
One of the things that makes YAIPaks stand out from other organizations is they take the resources to them. “We’re not a stand-alone shopping closet where people can come into the warehouse. We are a mobile outreach so everything we do is in the streets,” Nicholson said.
The YAIPaks warehouse downtown has a number of items, many of them donated, including clothing, toiletries, household goods, nonperishable food and more.
Volunteers are a very important part of the work of YAIPaks to help sort and prepare items to be distributed. Volunteer times for their warehouse are Monday from 9 a.m.- noon and Thursday evening 5-8 p.m.
Dr. Grace Lee and some of her staff from Grace Dental recently helped at the YAIPaks warehouse. “Sherry is the most selfless person we’ve met and her mission to make everyone feel “you are important” is life changing in Clarksville,” said Dr. Lee.
This summer the Grace Dental team is traveling to El Salvador, Vietnam and Haiti and they are currently looking for donations for orphanages such as soccer balls (deflated), nail polishes and small electronic items. Donations can be dropped off at Grace Dental, 304 Providence Boulevard, Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Dr. Lee said the Grace Dental team has been on mission trips around the world offering dental care and are hoping to do the same thing in Clarksville. They are working on organizing a Medical Dental mobile unit customized to provide free, limited medical and dental care to those in need.
To find out more about the great work of YAIPaks in the community, sign up as a volunteer, or to make a donation, visitwww.YAIoutreach.org, email info@yaioutreach.org, or call 931-701-0707.
