Our Safety Kit For The Energizer Light Up A Life Champions for Kids Campaign #EnergizerCFK #CBias #ChampionsForKids

As I mentioned in my introductory post about the Energizer Light Up A Life Champions for Kids Campaign, my son and I made a trip to our local Walmart to purchase winter safety items. Our goal was to create a kit that would help a child survive freezing temperatures.

I warned him prior to entering Walmart that it was not going to be a fast trip, we would be visiting several areas of the store to find the best items to keep a child safe during cold winter nights. I also asked him for input along the way, so he felt involved and excited.

I went into Walmart with this list in mind:

I grabbed everything on that list except socks (was not sure of age, gender or size) and I forgot the bottled water so I will grab that before delivering the kit. As for the first aid kit, I basically grabbed loose items that would be inside.

Our kit was enormous. Once my son and I brainstormed and walked around Walmart, we thought of so many items that needed to be included. Also, since we live in Orlando the winter gear selection was limited (Walmart was gearing up for Summer) which forced us to find other items. Since we would be delivering our kit to an organization that provides shelter for the homeless, we decided to keep those aspects in mind while shopping.

You can follow our path to purchase Google+ album by clicking HERE to see our thought process and the aisles we visited.

The first area we hit was the Valentine’s sale aisle. I thought it would be appropriate to include heart shaped items since it would convey the message of love. We grabbed plastic cups, heart decorated tissue paper and heart lollipops. To our surprise, those items rang up for 75% off (the sign indicated 50% off)!

Afterwards, we went straight to the Home section in search of a warm blanket. The selection was slim, so we were happy to stumble upon a travel accessory section (same aisle as suitcases). We grabbed a soft travel blanket with inflatable pillow for $10, I was happy with how compact it was yet still warm and comfortable.

The Sporting Goods section was next so we could check out the Energizer flashlight selection. There were several nice lights to choose from, but my son ultimately decided on a Cars flashlight (he has the same one at home). We also grabbed an extra package of Energizer batteries.

This is the flashlight that I thought would be best; however, since our kit is for a child I went with my son’s idea.

The winter clothing and accessory selection was slim, but we did find a warm skull hat in the children’s department. After that, we hit the food aisle in search of non-perishable items. We grabbed a few items (see our complete list below), then made our way to the Health & Beauty and Pharmacy areas. I knew we’d be grabbing quite a few items there, but little did I realize my son would have such great input. He insisted on chewable multivitamins for the kit as well as a toothbrush and toothpaste. Great ideas! We also selected safety items, medicine, soap and antibacterial wipes.

With our collapsible tote just about stuffed to the maximum, we felt confident with our selections. While loading the conveyor belt with our purchases, we noticed a few more items in the checkout aisle that we added (hand warmers, chap stick, and kid’s sports chews).

Here is a list of what our complete Winter Safety Kit included:

• Energizer Flashlight with 2 extra Energizer batteries
• 8 pack of Energizer Max batteries
• Collapsible tote basket
• Travel blanket with inflatable pillow
• Children’s Chewable Multivitamins
• Children’s Pain & Fever Acetaminophen (ages 2 – 11)
• Cough drops
• Hydrogen Peroxide
• Bars of soap
• Band-aids
• Tissues
• Chap-stick
• Hand Warmers
• 2 toothbrushes & toothpaste
• Hand sanitizer
• Q-tips
• Nail clipper and file
• Cottonelle flush-able wipes
• Wet Ones antibacterial wipes
• Stingeze (insect bite relief)
• 3 tubes of waterproof sunscreen lotion
• Winter hat
• Non-perishable food items: Sharkies kids sports chews, hot chocolate, Jif natural peanut butter “to go” packs, Nutella, Raisins, Nuts, and GoGoSqueeZ applesauce and fruit pouches
• Plastic cups
• Heart shaped lollipops (so the child knows people care and they are loved)
• Bottled waters

I wanted to include small bottles of Gatorade since I know it helps prevent dehydration when children are sick, but unfortunately it was only sold in an enormous bottle or a 12 pack. I knew neither would fit inside my kit, so I skipped it.

After assembling our kit, we packed the car and drove to Coalition For The Homeless Of Central Florida. This organization is so deserving since they make such a difference to our homeless population. In case you missed it, here are statistics about how they helped Central Florida last fiscal year.

• Provided over 245,000 nights of shelter.
• Provided nearly 79,000 nights of shelter to children.
• Served more than 300,000 meals.

In addition to the winter safety kit contents mentioned above, we also donated the following general items: diapers, soaps, shampoos, children’s wash clothes, twin sheets, a blanket, sleeping bag, deodorant, ladies feminine products, adult size winter hats, gloves and scarfs.

My son and I thoroughly enjoyed this mission! Delivering the safety kit to Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida completely warmed our hearts. Just knowing we helped keep at least one child safe and healthy during winter makes us smile.

When we dropped off our goodies earlier today, there were so many children outside the Coalition for the Homeless. It totally put into perspective what a problem homelessness is in Central Florida. Reading the statistics tugged at my heart, but actually seeing these little ones was tougher than I imagined.