School clubs collecting jeans

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Photo submitted by Michele Phillips. Students pose with some of the jeans they have collected so far this month. Back row left to right: Grace Sanfilippo, Sawyer Smith, Ryan Rogers, Teagan Kick, Erik Carrasquillo Front row left to right: Emmie Phillips and Becca Barone

Updated: February 20, 2012 8:35AM

The Teens for Teens clubs at both Barrington Middle School Prairie and Station campuses will be Teens for Jeans through the end of the month.

The eighth graders in the service club are collecting new and gently used jeans of all styles and sizes for the Teens for Jeans program through Aeropostale and dosomething.org. Teens for Teens has collection boxes set up at Barrington Middle School-Station, 215 Eastern Ave., Barrington Middle School-Prairie, 40 E. Dundee Road, and Countryside Elementary School, 205 W. County Line Road.

“We drop (the jeans) off at any local Aeropostale store and then they distribute them to people in need,” said Laura Jones, parent volunteer with the Barrington Middle School-Station club. “... I’m hoping to collect hundreds and hundreds of jeans.”

Emmie Phillips, an eighth-grader from Barrington and member of the club at Prairie campus, said it makes her feel good to help people who aren’t as fortunate as her. She said the clubs have already collected about 100 pairs of jeans.

“A lot of kids in Barrington are fortunate and we want to give to kids who aren’t as fortunate because the number one thing they wanted is jeans,” Phillips said.

Arsalaan Hussain, an eighth-grader from South Barrington and member of the club at Station campus, said when his club met with WINGS, which helps homeless and abused women and children by offering integrated services that meet their needs for shelter, education, guidance and support, the officials said the thing most kids wished for when they arrived was a new pair of jeans.

Hussain said he couldn’t imagine not being able to wear his favorite pair of jeans on a regular basis. He went through his own closet to donate some jeans.

“I hope they feel a sense of normality,” Hussain said of the people who receive the collected jeans.

Phillips encourages people to go through their closets and make a donation.

“If you’re not going to wear them, you might as well give them to someone who will wear them,” Phillips said.

Teens for Teens purpose is for teens to help other teens, said Michele Phillips, parent volunteer for the club at Barrington Middle School-Prairie.