Cambridge food bank helping kids get ready for school
Posted Aug 10, 2018 07:09:25 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
NEWS RELEASE
CAMBRIDGE SELF-HELP FOOD BANK
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The Cambridge Self-Help Food Bank (CSHFB) is working to collect backpacks and school supplies for children of low income families in Cambridge and North Dumfries. Backpacks for Bookworms is an annual program run by the CSHFB that provides children with the supplies they need just in time for back-to-school.
Backpacks are being collected and stuffed with essential school supplies such as lunch bags, pencil cases, and re-usable water bottles. The backpacks are filled with age appropriate supplies, and are provided to students of a variety of ages, from kindergarten to grade 12.
The CSHFB has been running Backpacks for Bookworms for over 15 years. The program had humble beginnings: “We started the program with just a handful of kids in the community, and it has grown into a large initiative. We have great community support,” said Dianne McLeod, Program Manager at the CSHFB, who runs the program every year.
The goal for 2018 is to fill backpacks for 600 students, and the program is well underway. “We have around half the supplies we need currently, but we are looking to collect more.”
Backpacks for Bookworms has changed over the years. With technology in the classroom increasing, the needs of students change. “We don’t require as much paper and pencils as we have in previous years. We are looking for re-usable water bottles, lunchboxes, and of course, backpacks” said McLeod. The most needed items for the program are backpacks, re-usable water bottles, lunch bags and containers, pencil
sharpeners, and erasers.
People interested in donating to Backpacks for Bookworms can deliver donations of new school supplies to the CSHBF office at 54 Ainslie Street South, Cambridge.
Items free from branding or character designs are preferred, as they can be given to children of any age. Cash donations are also accepted and will be used to purchase supplies. Backpacks are sorted and filled by Food Bank volunteers and are personalized to the needs of students of specific grades and ages.
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