Cape High AVID students support Code Purple

A discussion on leadership skills evolved into a food donation drive led by the Cape High sophomore AVID class.

AVID is an elective course that prepares students for college and careers by teaching organizational and study skills and offering enrichment and motivational activities. 

Teacher Dawn Clarke said her class wanted to do something to help the community, and decided to support Delaware’s Code Purple shelters.

Mike Agnew, site coordinator for the Code Purple at St. Jude the Apostle in Lewes, visited the class Jan. 25 to talk about homelessness and how the shelter works. Agnew said the program runs Dec. 1 through March 15.

The goal for his presentation, Agnew said, was for students to take home what they learned and talk about how it feels to be homeless with their families.

Agnew said he told students that St. Jude’s Code Purple is one of six shelters in Sussex County and is only for men. Anyone who needs shelter can make a reservation by calling Code Purple at 302-519-0024.

At St. Jude, about 11 to 13 guests stay in the Parish Life Center each night, Agnew said. The men arrive between 8:30 to 9:30 p.m., he said, and some come on a bus donated to Code Purple by Lt. Gov. Bethany Hall-Long.

The bus picks the men up at Walmart at 8:30 p.m. each night and brings them to the shelter, where their first activity is having something to eat, Agnew said.

In the morning, the bus takes the men to the Community Resource Center in Rehoboth, where they can shower, do laundry, have a meal and receive support services, including job hunting assistance, he said.

During his presentation, Agnew told students that homelessness in Delaware increased 100% from 2020 to 2023, and showed pictures of tents in the woods across the street from Walmart.

To support Code Purple, Clarke’s students held a food drive, seeking meals that can be made in a microwave. Students made and hung posters throughout school advertising the donation drive, which was also featured on the Cape Report on YouTube and the morning announcements.

Students collected several boxes of the nonperishable items to deliver to the shelter, Clarke said.

“When [Agnew] came in, students made a connection and got to see who they are helping,” she said. “They took ownership of the project, and it helped them feel connected with the community.”