Northshore Schools Foundation’s annual backpack and school supply drive is expanding this year to better meet the needs of the community. The foundation will collect new and used children’s books, used musical instruments, and socks and underwear in addition to the traditional school supplies and backpacks.
“Our community is so generous, and the collection drives are pretty successful. With so many different needs out in the community, we wanted to amplify our efforts by providing a more streamlined approach,” said Carmin Dalziel, executive director of the Northshore Schools Foundation.
This year’s Backpacks for Kids launches on Monday, July 11th, and runs through August 5th. Financial donations are accepted all year long via the northshoreschoolsfoundation.org Website.
“We service more students during Backpacks for Kids than any other time in the school year,” said Heather Erickson, Removing Barriers Program Manager for the Northshore Schools Foundation. “This program launches a preschooler to have their best first start to school and equips a high school senior to end their school-aged years strong.”
“I have seen firsthand the joy in students’ eyes when they receive the supplies and have heard the sigh of relief from those parents experiencing financial hardship. It really makes a difference, and we couldn’t do it without the help of our compassionate community,” Erickson said.
Last year, more than 958 NSD students in financial need received school supplies with help from the supporters of Northshore Schools Foundation. At the foundation’s August 2021 distribution event, Northshore students took home 785 new backpacks and 775 supply kits. An additional 150 backpacks and supply kits were distributed throughout the 2021/22 school year. The foundation aims to provide school supplies for at least 1,000 students this year.
During the drive the following items are being collected:
School supplies
Sturdy backpacks
Crayons
Glue sticks
Markers (fine & wide) and highlighters
Scissors
Pencils, colored pencils, erasers, and sharpeners
New socks and underwear
Teen boxer briefs
Hipster styles
No show ankle socks
New and used children’s books
E-Z readers
Children’s Books in different languages
High-demand chapter books
Current biographies at student level
Musical instruments which can be refurbished
Drop off supplies at any of these collection sites from July 11th through August 5th:
Alexa’s, 10115 Main Street, Bothell
Banner Bank, 17530 132nd Ave NE Ste. A, Woodinville
Banner Bank, 18203 Bothell Way NE, Bothell
Cairn Brewing - 7204 NE 175th St. Bldg A, Kenmore
Kenmore Smiles/ Kenmore Pediatric Dentistry, 6821 NE 181st St., Kenmore
Starbucks – Multiple locations
Canyon Park - 22904 Bothell Everett Highway, Bothell
Thrashers Corner - 2020 Maltby Road, Bothell
Woodinville Fire & Rescue
Station 31/HQ - 17718 Woodinville Snohomish Road NE
Station 33 (Bear Creek) - 19401 NE 133rd Street
Station 35 (Cottage Lake) - 17825 Avondale Road NE
Special thanks to North Creek Storage who is our official storage provider and provides space for our work parties for this program.
Watch the Foundation’s social media account for special “pop-up” collection events where community members can drop off their donations and meet members of the Foundation team. Our first one is planned for August 3rd, 5-8 pm at Celebrate Woodinville at Wilmot Park!
Financial donations are also needed to purchase spiral notebooks, comp books, and pocket folders in bulk, at substantial savings for our students and to allow the foundation to meet student supply needs throughout the school year. We are projecting that $48,000 will be needed this academic year for supply replenishment.
Families with Northshore students experiencing hardship are encouraged to request school supplies at this link https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=ruGnhXey5kiX0afsrcPww4Bzo2jvMy1GlG2i2eDyKm1UMlZTUEdXME40M1I2TTVKSzQxOVZYTEFQSCQlQCN0PWcu or via the northshoreschoolsfoundation.org Website (click the Request Support button on the top right)
Volunteers are needed to support this program. Follow this link to sign up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0A4EA4A92FA3F49-backpacks6