National Backpack Program

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For three years I participated in a book bag giveaway to the children in Upper Darby until a change in job duties did not allow me to give as much time to the program. I’ve always enjoyed school supply shopping: fresh boxes of crayons, the smell of wooden pencils, and crisp notebooks signals that summer is over and school is about to begin. Watching the back to school mailers and commercials play, I decided that while I’m picking through the 25¢ crayons, 10¢ folders and other items, why not ask my school teacher friends what supplies they needed. For a few dollars more, I can definitely help a few children in need.

Fellow blogger Jessica at Eat. Sleep. Be. has some suggestions to help make back to school time less stressful for parents while also assisting those in need. (The idea that your baby towers over you and had bass in his voice is for you to work with. Unless that’s just me coping with this.) Check out Jessica’s suggestions and visit her blog for ideas on being a mindful consumer. Plus you can add some ideas of your own.

For 15 years, the Office Depot Foundation has had the same idea, providing children with the tools they need to succeed in school at the beginning of the year.

Millions of Packs

This year is no exception. Some 200,000 colorful new sackpacks will be provided to nonprofit organizations and agencies across the U.S. and internationally. By the end of the year, more than 3.7 million backpacks and sackpacks will have been distributed to children in need since the program begin in 2001.

“For most children, the first day of school is an exciting time complete with new clothes and back-to-school gear,” says Office Depot Foundation President Mary Wong. “But for kids in families where money is tight, the experience can be just the opposite. We believe that every child should have the opportunity to go to school with dignity and hope. The sackpacks and school supplies we donate help to level the playing field and give these wonderful children a reason to stand just a little bit taller.”

To distribute sackpacks directly to children, the Foundation hosted Back-to-School Celebrations in some 20 cities across the U.S. this summer. In New Orleans alone, the Office Depot Foundation has donated more than 50,000 backpacks and sackpacks to children in the decade since Hurricane Katrina.

Continuing Partnerships

Thousands more sackpacks are being given to kids through the foundation’s continuing partnerships with nine nonprofit organizations serving children nationally and globally. Partners include the AARP Experience Corps, Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA), the National Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) Association, Feed the Children, Food For The Poor, the Kids In Need Foundation, the National Foundation for Women Legislators, Operation Homefront and Samaritan’s Feet International. For the seventh consecutive year, children of the Navajo Nation in Arizona will receive sackpacks.

The specially designed, drawstring-style sackpacks come in seven bright and colorful designs that are new for 2015. Each one includes a zippered pouch containing a pen, pencil, pencil sharpener, eraser, six-inch ruler and four crayons. The sackpacks do not have any Office Depot Foundation or Office Depot logos or markings.

More information about the National Backpack Program can be found on the Foundation’s Facebook page. To learn more, visit www.officedepotfoundation.org. You can follow the Foundation on Twitter @OfficeDepotFndn; the National Backpack Program’s hashtag is #ODFcares. The Foundation is also on Instagram: @officedepotfoundation.

Raya Fagg is a mom of two from Upper Darby, PA. This post is adapted from her blog, And Starring As Herself…MRSRFKJ.

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