Donating School Supplies in the Neighborhood

The Pittsburgh Tote Bag Project's website has listed places in the Pittsburgh area where people can donate new and gently used school supplies for students starting the new year.

in Edgewood Towne Centre is accepting donations of school supplies for families of active duty military and veterans through Sept. 9.

Donations of gently used school supplies can be directed to Pittsburgh Center for Creative Reuse. Donations must be preapproved, so be sure to call or email the organization to ensure they can accept your items. Teachers often purchase gently used items to share with their students or organize activities, according to the Tote Bag Project website.

Homeless Children Education Fund, which serves students throughout Allegheny County, is seeking donations of school supplies for children currently living in one of the regional homeless shelters.

Donations of school supplies with backpacks or other bags left at Pittsburgh Tote Bag Project's drop-off spots will be passed on to the region’s food pantries and partner agencies for distribution to local families in need. Among the local drop-off spots are , , and South Avenue Methodist Church.

Things to donate include:

• Folders 
• 3 ring binders 
• Scissors
• Construction paper
• Glue
• Glue sticks
• Pens
• Pencils
• Pencil sharpeners
• Spiral notebooks
• College-ruled lined paper
• Crayons
• Markers
• Colored pencils
• Rulers
• Erasers
• Pencil boxes
• Craft Materials
• Calculators 

For more information and places to donate, check out the Pittsburgh Tote Bag Project's page.