New School Supplies, Clothes Equip Children With Fresh Confidence
On Saturday, Aug. 1, 114 boys and girls ages four to 18 were set loose upon the Sears in Pasadena to select needed attire and shoes just in time for the start of the new school year. Each child was provided with a $75 gift card, as they use their back-to-school wish lists to get busy shopping with assistance from their parents an hour before the store is open to the general public.
The high cost of back-to-school supplies is something that many struggling, low-income families simply cannot afford. The average K-12 parent spent $100 per student on school supplies last year, an amount that was 12 percent higher from the year prior according to Today.com. That high and rising cost is why The Salvation Army Pasadena Tabernacle Community Center is joining forces with local community partners to give deserving children the tools and confidence they’ll need to succeed in the classroom.
Donations from the Pasadena Lions Club helped fund the gift cards, and extra discounts from Staples help guarantee backpacks full of supplies are given to each child prior to their entering Sears. To help the children stretch their dollars even further, Sears offered an additional 20% discount on back-to-school items. The City of Pasadena Fire and Police Departments were also on hand. The children participating in this event were all pre-selected based on need.