Launch of nonprofit meant to motivate kids to volunteer in Central Texas communities deemed a success

WACO, Texas (KWTX) - A local mother has created a new nonprofit to get kids volunteering and serving their communities at a younger age and the launch has proven to be a huge success.

Hometown Heroes was founded by mom of three, Kylie Barbin, of Waco, with a mission to empower children to make a difference in their communities through age-appropriate service projects.

The 2005 Vanguard College Preparatory graduate officially launched the nonprofit this week with a school supply drive that gathered hundreds of backpacks, school supplies of all kinds from Amazon wish lists, and thousands of dollars in donations for area school children in need.

The “Stuff the Bus” drive was held at Poage Park Sunday and included a special autograph signing for kids by Baylor basketball star Adam Flagler.

Barbin said hundreds of people showed up and many others donated online.

“I was overwhelmed by the support of our first donation drive from people both near and far,” she said.

Barbin said she began to work on the details of creating Hometown Heroes at home during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020.

“When my oldest children were a little younger, I wanted them involved in community service right away,” Barbin said. “So, as I looked to different nonprofits, there just wasn’t really an option at that age.”

Barbin said as she talked to nonprofits, she realized the need was great for an organization to help organize children’s efforts to give back.

“When I talked to them directly, all of them were very eager for children to help out, but it’s big task for them so I decided to start Hometown Heroes in order to organize those projects for them, work directly with them, highlight different parts of the community, different causes each month and just get kids involved at an earlier age than they used to be able to.”

The nonprofit will select a difference cause and organization to benefit each month.

This month the cause was education and the beneficiaries were Talitha Koum Institute and Salvation Army.

Next month, the focus will be homelessness and after that Barbin plans to help address hunger, give back to the elderly, and support the disabled community, to name a few.

Hometown Heroes will focus on group service projects, home service projects and custom service projects for groups that have an idea but just need a helping hand.

The best way to get involved is to follow Hometown Heroes Waco on Instagram or subscribe to their emails at hometownheroeswaco.org.

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