Neighborhood Bridges launches in Wooster to meet student needs through community giving

At the start of this school year, Wooster City Schools began participating in Neighborhood Bridges, a national nonprofit founded in 2017 in response to a growing rate of poverty in suburban and rural areas in the United States. Bridges supports direct, local giving in partnership with school leaders.

Joe and Gina Morbitzer are the area directors for Neighborhood Bridges Wooster.

“NBW is a fantastic grassroots effort to assist students who have needs,” Joe Morbitzer said. “It taps into the generous folks in our community to help those in need.”

Neighborhood Bridges started in Westerville, where the Morbitzers previously resided. The founder of Neighborhood Bridges, Rick Bannister, was in a Rotary Club with Joe Morbitzer. Bannister did a presentation on his organization, and the Morbitzers have supported the effort ever since.

Wooster City Schools Superintendent Gabe Tudor was approached by the Morbitzers last year about the idea of starting a program in Wooster.

“Rick Bannister made a presentation to school staff outlining the Neighborhood Bridges philosophy,” Gina Morbitzer said. “The concept was embraced by Superintendent Tudor and his staff, and it was launched at the beginning of this school year.”

“We always have needs for our students,” Tudor said. "We also have a service coordination department that we felt would align perfectly with this program. We also know we have a very generous community that wants to serve but often doesn't know the need.”

Neighborhood Bridges Wooster is now up and running, welcoming community members to sign up for the mailing list to stay informed about student needs as they arise.

“Requests are all submitted through our service coordinator,” Tudor said. “But needs can be identified by teachers, administrators, support staff, parents/guardians and/or guidance counselors.”

Anyone with a child who has a need should reach out to the school district for support, and then the service coordination department will connect with Neighborhood Bridges. To contact Wooster City Schools, call 330-988-1111 or email info@woostercityschools.org.

“Once requests are reviewed, they are posted on the Neighborhood Bridges Wooster social media platforms asking for contributors to fulfill the need or make a donation to assist with each need,” Gina Morbitzer said, adding all requests and needs remain confidential.

Community members can enroll online and fulfill a need or donate at www.neighborhoodbridges.org/community/wooster-oh.

An example of the current needs is a call for personal hygiene items for high school students.

While the program may not be able to help with every request directly, it also works to direct people to other community resources as needed.

“We may not be able to fill some needs,” Joe Morbitzer said, “but we can direct those requests to some of the other service organizations in the community that may serve the need.”

Requested items are dropped off at either the Wooster Schools Professional Learning Center or the Wooster Police Department. Cash donations may be made online.

“Once items are received, they are transported to the school coordinator, who in turn presents the fulfilled request to the student,” Gina Morbitzer said. “We take the privacy and confidentiality of each student seriously.”