Youth Start Out School Year With New Backpacks

For many,  heading to the store toward the end of summer break and picking up their new school supplies is a warm, sentimental memory. There was something about new pencils, notebooks, backpacks and the like that brought excitement for the year ahead and confidence to take on new challenges.

For many of the teens in our program,  there are several barriers  that exist around getting those backpacks and supplies. Showing up for their first day of school empty handed is a real possibility and a common place for the opportunity gap to widen. With this in mind, New Pathways provides brand new backpacks filled with supplies for the all the youth in our program who need them. This ensures that they feel prepared to take on a new year of learning and growth – and savor those new pencil pouches and folders!

With the help of several corporate partners, New Pathways was able to stuff and distribute 150 backpacks with everything needed for a new school year. Backpacks were provided by Toyota Financial Services, BHHS Legacy Foundation and Desert Financial. American Studio donated the supplies from their Tech Gear line to be put into the backpacks. Toyota Financial Services also sent over several volunteers to help out with stuffing the backpacks and handing them out at our workshops in August.

We’re so grateful to everyone who made this project a success! If you’d like to get involved in next year’s drive, reach out to Nick Jensen, njensen@npfy.org.