When you think about going back to school, what comes to your mind first? What to wear on that first day, what new outfit to pick from, seeing friends and catching up on summer activities, or getting school supplies in your new backpack? How about being scared? Scared of the new teachers, maybe a new school, making new friends, will your old friends be in your classroom, will the kids like me, or will I fit in? Maybe you are scared that you don’t have any new school clothing or school supplies and are wondering what your friends are going to think. We understand the anxieties that come with the new school year and we are here to help!

Our Back to School Program provides children with their basic school supplies: a backpack, notebooks, folders, pens, pencils, crayons, markers, colored pencils, erasers, loose leaf paper, etc. With the wonderful donations from community members, parishes, community groups and local businesses, we were able to provide backpacks and school supplies to over 900 children last year. With the help of Goodwill, we were also able to give out Goodwill vouchers to those families who needed that “new” school
clothing.

This year we have already had 600 familes (totaling over 2000 students) apply for help with their back to school needs. We have had many wonderful school supply donations come into our office – many backpacks, pens, pencils, folders and notebooks, as well as monetary donations. The monetary donations that we have received will help us buy the supplies that are still in demand. We would like to send a BIG THANK YOU to everyone who has donated, but we are still in need of your help! We need help with donating school supplies and/or monetary donations. We also need volunteers to help sort school supplies, fill backpacks or help distribute items as the families come in to pick them up. For more information on volunteering your time, please contact Shannon at 608.782.0710.

Let’s make the start of this school year an AWESOME experience!

Shannon Parker
Financial Welless Advocate