Leake and Watts Calls for Backpack Donations

New pencils, crayons, notebooks, and backpacks—the symbols of a new school year and a fresh start for students K-12. Last year, parents spent $103 on average for school supplies, according to the National Retail Federation. Regrettably, many low-income families do not have $103 to spare. To them, basic school supplies are unaffordable luxuries, or they have to make hard decisions and do without something else.

So, imagine how good it would feel to give families the school supplies they need; how much your generosity would mean to their children’s self-esteem. Now, Leake & Watts is encouraging the community to reach into their hearts and purses, and throw an extra backpack or two and a few notebooks into their shopping carts to donate to Leake & Watts’ annual Back to School Backpack Drive. Donations can be dropped off at the Leake & Watts campus in Yonkers, or the agency will arrange pick up of large donations of backpacks and supplies. Leake & Watts would like to receive donations by Friday, August 12, 2016.

“It’s such a small thing to do, but it means the world to these children and their families,” explains Meredith Barber, senior director of institutional advancement at Leake & Watts, an award-winning nonprofit agency that supports 11,000 children, adults, and families in the New York metropolitan area. “By donating needed school supplies, you have the power to help prepare children to do their best in school. Every child deserves the tools to rise above adversity, achieve great things, and succeed in life.”

Backpacks Are Most Needed

Barber says backpacks for students in kindergarten through high school are most needed. Leake & Watts is requesting that the community donate:

· Backpacks for children in grades K-12 (most needed)

· 3-ring binders and dividers

· Composition notebooks

· 1-subject spiral notebooks

· Pocket folders

· #2 pencils, crayons, highlighters

· Rulers, glue stocks, erasers

For more information, to arrange pick up, or make an in-person donation, please contact Catherine Mason at 914-375-8813 or cmason [at] leakeandwatts.org.