Submitted by Jennifer Favalora, Interim Executive Director
(August 15, 2023) — Haddam Killingworth Youth & Family Services announces the following programs and events for August 2023:
5th Annual Free Haircut Event and Food Drive    Dillon Zak and his friends from Glenwood Barbershop return on August 27, 2023 for their fifth year of providing free haircuts for Haddam-Killingworth K-12 students. Dillon is an HK Grad who reached out to HKYFS five years ago to start a program of giving back to his community. Zak shared that he gets just as much as he gives. “I like to always spread positivity and spiritual growth,” he said.
Each year, this free event has also been a collection point for the community. This year HKYFS is hosting a Food Drive for the HK Backpack program and will have a collection bin at the free haircut event. Dillon will also be giving away a Nintendo Switch to one lucky HK student who gets a haircut at the event. The event will be held on August 27, 2023 from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Haddam Volunteer Firehouse, 439 Saybrook Road, Higganum. No appointments are needed.
Food Drive for the HK Backpack Program          This August, HKYFS is supporting the HK Backpack Program with a food drive across Haddam and Killingworth. The HK Backpack program has been providing meals for HK students at risk of weekend hunger for the past eight years. Students receive a bag of food with breakfasts, lunches, and dinners that are child-friendly, nutritious, non-perishable, and easy to prepare.
Collection bins have been set up at Nutmeg Pharmacy, Killingworth True Value, HK Health and Fitness, and at the free haircut event on August 27th. The most needed items are Shelf-Stable Milk, Cereal, Soup, Fruit Cups, Canned Chicken, Dinner Meal Kits, Chef Boyardee and Spaghetti-Os, Tomato Sauce, Jelly in plastic jars, Bread, and Burger Buns in regular size, small packages. You can also call the HKYFS office to schedule a pick-up of donations at 860-345-7498.
School Supplies for Haddam & Killingworth Students For the 10th year, HKYFS will help HK students have the tools they need to start the school year on the right foot. Thanks to donations from our generous community, HKYFS is able to continue our annual school supply program for families requesting assistance. Students will receive a new lunchbox and a backpack filled with what they need to start the school year. You can register for this confidential program by calling the office manager at 860-345-7498.
