Build a Backpack drive kicks off today

By Sarah Campbell

scampbell@salisburypost.com

Communities in Schools of Rowan County is hoping to provide at least 1,000 local students with the school supplies this fall, but they need help to reach that goal. The nonprofit organization, which focuses on dropout prevention, will work with Walmart to kick off the statewide Build a Backpack back to school supply drive today.

“We could not be more thrilled to partner with Communities in Schools to serve our state’s students,” Ronny Hayes, regional vice president of Walmart, said in a press release.

This is the first time Communities in Schools has teamed up with Walmart to host a supply drive.

“We are so excited about this new partnership with Walmart,” Vicky Slusser, executive director of Communities In Schools of Rowan County, said. “I believe the need will be greater this school year, but with the help of Walmart and their customers we will be able to help even more children.”

Bins will be located at the front of both the Salisbury and Kannapolis Walmart stores for items ranging from pencils to flash drives to school uniforms.

Slusser said loose-leaf notebook paper is a basic that children of all ages can use.

“That is something that they constantly need,” she said.

Slusser said although cashiers will not be allowed to ask for monetary donations, they will be accepted at the registers. That money will be turned into gift cards and donated to Communities in Schools to purchase school uniforms.

Walmart in Salisbury will host a fashion show featuring store associates from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. July 30 to promote Build a Backpack.

Slusser said the Rowan County Visitor’s Bureau has also donated the use of its trolley from 2 to 4 p.m. Aug. 7.

She said as people drop off donations at Walmart they will receive a free ticket for a trolley ride.

The supply drive will run through Aug. 21.

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Communities in Schools of Rowan County will also be partnering with WSOC-TV for the 15th annual School Tools supply drive.

Creative Teaching Aids, BB&T, Rowan Regional Medical Center and Freightliner will have bins set up at their facilities to collect school supplies and uniforms.

“They’ll be collecting everything from the backpack to all the supplies kids need,” Slusser said.

Slusser said anyone who brings school supplies to the Aug. 19 Kannapolis Intimidators game will receive free admission.

Rowan County residents can also leave school supplies at their mailboxes Aug. 20 and their postal carrier will pick them up.

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Supplies from both the Build a Backpack and School Tools drives will be distributed to needy families in Rowan County on Aug. 20.

Slusser said Communities in Schools will team up with First Baptist Church to host the community-wide giveaway at the church gym at 220 N. Fulton St.

Rod Kerr, First Baptist’s minister of education, said they are also hoping other groups that are collecting school supplies will bring their items to the distribution to combine forces.

“One church might have a lot of notebooks and another might have a lot of pencils,” he said. “It’s really just a way to use the resources a little bit better and a little bit smarter to make sure we have the bases covered.”

Kerr and Slusser will host a meeting at the church gym, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday to brainstorm ideas about how to make the distribution a success. Individuals and groups are invited to attend.

“Hopefully what we are going to do is stand in the middle of our double gym and dream about what we can do if we work together,” he said. “There is no reason why we can’t fill this place up with school supplies.”

Kerr said he hopes the meeting acts as a reminder that the needs of the community can’t be met by just a few.

“Anybody can go and pick up a couple more packs of paper or pencils, it doesn’t take much ” he said. “I think that’s the key, everybody can do something.”

Local housing authorities and Rowan County Department of Social Services have already been refering low-income families to the supply giveaway.

“We’ve got even more people this year who might have to decide on whether to put food on the table or buy school supplies,’ Kerr said.

Slusser said any Rowan County resident can come to the distribution event to collect supplies, but both parent and child must be in attendance.

For more information about how to donate, contact Slusser at 704-797-0210 or Kerr at 704-633-0431.

Contact reporter Sarah Campbell at 704-797-7683.

Needed items:

• Loose leaf notebook paper (wide and college rule)

• 3-ring binders

• Graph paper

• Marble notebooks

• Index cards

• Dividers

• Pocket folders

• Highlighters

• Markers

• Crayons

• Colored pencils

• Ziploc baggies

• Hand sanitizer (without alcohol)

• Pencils

• Ink pens

• Headphones

• Colored clay

• Tissues

• Poster board

• Erasers

• Rulers

• Safety compass

• Protractors

• Book bags

• Glue sticks

• Wet wipes (unscented))

• Scissors

• Pencil pouches

• Old (clean) socks

• Clipboards

• School uniforms

• Spiral notebooks

• Flash drives

• TI 83/84 calculators

• AA batteries

• CDs

• Bottled glue