Phoenix, AZ - Summer may have just begun, but 2,500 volunteers invaded the gymnasium at University Public Schools Phoenix (former Phoenix Preparatory Academy) to help more than 9,500 children get ready for the new school year at the annual Back to School Clothing Drive "New Clothes, New Beginnings Distribution Annual Distribution" event.
More than $400,000 of school clothes and supplies are being distributed to pre-registered K-6 graders during the week of July 12--16. The first bus arrives at 7:45 am each day with the last child departing by 4 pm. The 5,000 kids pre-registered to attend receive a full complement of new school clothing, uniforms, and school supplies. Another 4,000 children in Bullhead City will receive backpacks filled with school supplies and dental hygiene items through the BHHS Legacy Foundation's "Backpack Buddies" program. The remaining 500 students will receive the same backpacks through their affiliations with six other local nonprofit and community-based organizations.
"The children we serve are from families that choose between buying groceries, paying rent, or buying school clothes and supplies," said Karl Gentles, the executive director of the Back to School Clothing Drive. "They certainly can't do all three so our effort hopefully gives them piece of mind about their child's readiness for their first day of school and beyond." Major sponsors of the event include BHHS Legacy Foundation, Western Destinations, The USAA Foundation, City of Phoenix CDBG, Walmart, Dental Dental Foundation of Arizona, US Airways, amongst others.
Stacey Bonn, president of the Back to School Clothing Drive board of directors, says it isn't just about the clothes but something far more valuable: "We are truly in the business of building self esteem. Imagine your child showing up on the first day of school with clothes that don't fit or don't blend in with what their friends are wearing. It doesn't feel good, and it affects the learning process. We make sure these kids feel good about themselves so they can focus on learning."
The distribution event is one of the most unique volunteer opportunities among those offered by Valley non-profits. It teams each child with a "personal shopper" in a gymnasium that has been turned into a "department store." Students start out in the shorts/skorts area getting measured for bottoms that meet school uniform requirements. The next stop is socks and underwear, where plaid-patterned boxers and ankle socks fly off the shelves! Then they get a leather belt and then head over to the shirt and sweatshirt department. In the "Stitches-of-Love" area, each child selects an item that was handmade by one of the organization's 200 volunteer seamstresses. The final stops are for shoes and backpacks -- not only are the students happy to get new ones, they are thrilled they get to pick out the exact ones they want!
This year, the students also have the opportunity to "shop" for a children's book thanks to the Lambda Chapter of the Alpha Delta Kappa sorority. Through various book drives they were able to donate more than 5,000 books to Back to School Clothing Drive for this event. At the end of a long and satisfying day, the kids are loaded up with goodies and head home -- full of confidence and excited to start the new school year.
The volunteer corps of 2,500 volunteers includes representatives from Intel, Wells Fargo, National Charities League, Boys Team Charities, Bank of America, Freeport McMoRan Copper and Gold, and many other local organizations. In addition to serving as shoppers, volunteers also apent the week prior to the event organizing truckloads of merchandise, taking inventory, setting up for and participating in "backpack stuffing" day (which requires the most volunteers), and transforming the gymnasium into a "store."
By the end of the week, Back to School Clothing Drive and its partners will have provided students with more than 10,000 polo shirts, shorts and skirts; 5,000 hand-made clothing items including dresses, hair scrunchies, skinny scarves, purses, and flip flops; 12,000 pairs of socks and underwear; 5,000 new sneakers, sweatshirts and belts; and over 10,000 backpacks filled with hundreds of school supplies and dental hygiene items.
Founded in 1967, Back to School Clothing Drive is Arizona's largest provider of new school outfits, uniforms, backpacks and school supplies to children in need. Back to School operates on an annual budget of approximately $1 million with two employees, a 15-member volunteer board of directors, and more than 2,500. Visit them online at www.backtoschoolclothingdrive.com for more information. Follow them on Twitter @backtoschoolcd to get real-time event updates.
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