They do now.
Rozonda “Chilli” Thomas, a member of the multiplatinum, Grammy-winning group TLC, had been cutting out Box Tops for years in order to raise money for her son’s school programs and equipment. Now she is also a national spokesperson for General Mills BTFE program that has raised nearly half a billion dollars for American schools since its inception in 1996.
“I think this one in particular, hits home a little bit more for me being a single, working mom,” said the “Scrubs” singer. “I just think that this is one of the best programs out there because it’s an easy program to get involved with, not only for yourself but for other people because everyone goes to the grocery store. I just think it’s a phenomenal idea for General Mills to give back to the schools in this way.”
Here’s how the Box Tops for Education works: Ten-cent Box Tops coupons clipped from more than 240 products allow schools to earn thousands to buy textbooks, classroom technology, field trips, musical instruments, playground equipment and teacher scholarships. Parents, and children, can collect the box tops and take them to the school to earn hundreds, if not thousands of dollars, towards necessary school activities and equipment. One success story includes local parent Daphne Enmon raising $500 last year to purchase new marching band uniforms for Jean Childs Young Middle School.
“The fact that you’re already shopping – you are already buying the products that have this boxtop label on there and all you have to do is cut it out and kind of collect them,” Chilli emphasizes.
Social uplift has been part of Chilli and TLC’s resume since they formed 20 years ago. With songs like the mega-selling “Waterfalls.” “Unpretty,” “Hats to the Back,” and “What About Your Friends?,” Chilli has been advocating for the healhty development of people and children for years. She is also doing this in her personal life with helping to raise money for her son’s school.
And, Chilli adds, getting involved like this is easy. Very easy.
“This is not an inconvenient program; it doesn’t inconvenience anyone,” Chilli tells rolling out of the BTFE that raised $74 million last year and more than $475 million since 1996. “This is, like, the easiest program that you could ever think of. (One day) My son needed some binders, so I went Walmart and we saw the box tops right there on the binders. I was jumping up and down and they (people in the store) thought I had lost my mind.”
Speaking of minds, the General Mills BTFE program goes towards the development of students’ minds, particularly in the modern era where so many programs are being cut and parents like Chili are forced to incur a greater percentage of the costs for programs, field trips, books, computer equipment and the like.
“So if you’re a parent, and even if you’re not, just get involved,” Chilli implores. “Most schools take box tops. Like they said, it takes a villlage to raise a kid. So we all can get involved whether we have kids or not.”
