UPDATE SEPT. 6: Dawn Monroe tells My Cochrane Now Dot Com that the campaign resulted in 22 school bags — which she considers very good — and four pairs of running shoes.
For the 17th straight back to school season, a program called “Bags for Success” is operating in Cochrane. Organizer Dawn Monroe says it’s a collection of new or gently used backpacks, loaded with school supplies.
Donations help families who struggle financially with buying supplies.
“There are many families in any town that have children and it’s so expensive just to buy supplies,” Monroe remarks. “So we simply collect and we distribute them through the Cochrane Food Bank and the Jeanne Sauvé Centre.”
One thing Monroe is asking for that you might not expect is running shoes.
“Families have to provide running shoes for their kids. But when you go to school, you need a separate pair of running shoes for the gymnasium and this can be expensive as well.”
Donations can be dropped off at Busy Hands, Fresh and Fancy Bakery and Micro Solve, all on Sixth Ave. If you prefer to donate cash, you’ll get a receipt from St. Paul’s United Church.
ITEMS TO DONATE
- Backpacks (New or gently used)
- Pencil cases
- Pencil crayons
- Erasers
- Pens
- Rulers
- Sticky tape
- Pencils
- Pencil sharpeners
- White glu
- Scissors
- Magic markets
- Mathematic kits
- Binders
- Reinforcements for three-ring paper holes
- Running shoes for indoor use