(L-R) Dustin Moore, Fund Development and Events Specialist, and Myles Peake, Director of Fund Development for The Outreach Centre with supplies from the Tools for School program. (Supplied)

By Alessia Proietti

500 students already served

Backpacks for high school students still needed for Tools for School program

Aug 22, 2023 | 4:33 PM

Close to 500 kids have already received backpacks filled with supplies through the Tools for School program in central Alberta.

The annual program is run by The Outreach Centre and the United Way of Central Alberta, providing backpacks and school supplies to students from Kindergarten to Grade 12 whose families have limited resources.

Ian Wheeliker, Executive Director of the Centre, said they had their busiest day yet on Monday and expect to reach over 500 kids across central Alberta by the end of today.

Backpacks are filled with binders, coloured pencils, calculators, rulers, geometry sets and all sorts of other things that students may need to start the school year right.

He says this year’s community support has been excellent as usual while the Centre aims to accommodate families as much as possible with specific colours and sizes for supplies.

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He notes that the program has already received $14,000 in monetary donations.

“The whole program is really run on the generosity, thoughtfulness and compassion of the community and again, this year, there’s been so many donations. We’re not quite done yet so if people can still give a little, that would sure help us out,” he said.

One thing they are still in need of are backpacks for high school students from Grades 9-12.

With the hype usually dropping off around mid-September, he expects the numbers to be on par with last year, reaching around 1,100 students.

However, Wheeliker noted he has heard of other communities, like the City of Edmonton, that are anticipating increased demand compared to last year as families struggle with rising costs of inflation and interest rates.

“The kids that we’re helping out are always from low-income families and so they go to school and feel just as good as the kids that are coming from families that have a little bit more. It gives the kids an opportunity to just focus on getting back to the classroom, getting their classroom habits established for the year and their study habits and not having to worry about feeling like, ‘I don’t have a pen, I don’t have a scribbler, I don’t have a binder; my parents can’t afford it’,” he said.

“It takes that stigma away that has such an impact, especially for the kids that are middle-aged from 10-15; those kids are really worried about what other kids think and when they show up with their new knapsack, they feel pretty good.”

Tools for School backpacks (Supplied)

The program also used to donate shoes to students; however, stopped during the pandemic and it hasn’t yet returned.

Families in need can fill an application on the Centre’s website.

Others looking to donate can find a supply list online, make a monetary donation, drop off supplies at the United Way (100 – 4828 53 Street) or at The Outreach Centre (4101 54 Avenue), or purchase supplies through an Amazon Wish List.

The Centre continues to accept donations year-round for emergencies and to build inventory for the following school year.