Drive-Through Back To School Shop

Back to School Shop, Inc., an all-volunteer community organization, held its seventh annual event on Sunday, July 25 at Davenport Ridge Elementary School in Stamford. Nearly 450 children in need from the Stamford public elementary schools were preregistered by their school social workers to participate in the event. Families drove through the parking lot at appointed times to take delivery of backpacks filled with school supplies, toiletries, hand knit hats, gloves, underwear, socks, a sweatshirt, and a book. In addition, the parents received a $100 gift card for each child to enable them to purchase needed clothing for school.

Children and parents alike were excited to be able to participate in the event. One parent exclaimed, “This is a blessing, especially in times such as these. Back to School Shop makes everything so much easier” Another parent shared that they were currently out of work, “so this is so important!” The children were enthusiastically checking out the new items in their backpacks, and one young student spoke for many when she said “I feel excited and happy!”

In a special addition to this year’s event, Community Health Centers (CHC) set up a clinic in the school building to enable family members of participating children to quickly and easily get vaccinated. "After having given well over 500,000 vaccine doses across Connecticut, many in mass vaccination clinics, we are now focused on smaller clinics in local neighborhoods, and we are grateful to Back to School Shop for providing us with this opportunity”, expressed Leslie Gianelli, Vice President of Communications for CHC

Meryl Japha and Jane Levene, Co-Founders and Co-Chairs of Back to School Shop, Inc. were very pleased with the results of this year’s event. Said Levene,“We are thrilled that we were able to reach so many local children in a way that protects the safety of our young participants who haven’t yet been vaccinated, and we are so grateful to Community Health Centers for offering the opportunity for family members to receive their vaccinations.” Japha expressed gratitude for all of the Back to School Shop supporters. “Our loyal volunteers and others in the community pitched in to make this drive-through event a more personal one for the children. Knitters and crocheters in Stamford and beyond created over 700 hand-made hats for our children. It was so nice that each child knew that someone had taken the time to make a warm winter hat for them. Other supporters created personal notes to go into each backpack to wish the children a great school year.”

Alina Petroni, the organizer of a group of knitters at First Presbyterian Church in Stamford remarked, “When we heard about Back to School Shop from a member of our congregation, it sounded like a perfect project for us. Our group of knitters was thrilled to be able to be part of a community project that makes a difference.”

Fifty volunteers staffed the drive-through event, many of them repeat volunteers who expressed great enthusiasm for Back to School Shop. One volunteer, Wendy explained, “there’s something very special in seeing the kids’ happy faces when they receive their backpacks filled with goodies.” And another volunteer, Annette, said that “there is no place I’d rather be today…than bringing happiness to so many families!”

Amy Beldotti, Associate Superintendent for Teaching and Learning of the Stamford Public Schools was on hand for the event and thanked Back to School Shop on behalf of the Stamford Public Schools. “This is such an exciting event every year for our kids and families. It’s the first stop to getting ready to come back to school in August, and I know that they look forward to coming. I want to thank Back to School Shop and all of the volunteers who spent endless hours organizing this event, and those that are here today to make sure our families have the things they need for school.”

Since its inaugural year in 2015, Back to School shop has served over 2,000 children, and mobilized over 1,000 volunteers to support its work.

Back to School Shop is a 501(C)(3) non-profit organization. For more information visit www.backtoschoolshop.org