Back to school supplies can be an expensive purchase and for low-income families it can be too much to afford.
That’s where Pie Wood Fired Pizza Joint and Barrie city councillor Alex Nuttall come in. They’ve teamed up for the second year in-a-row for the backpack program. They are collecting back packs and filling them with school supplies for kids who desperately need them.
“There’s about 1,000 backpacks and they’re going to three main causes; Barrie Municipal not for profit housing, government housing in Simcoe County, and the children’s aid society,” said Nuttall.
Studies suggest some parents will spend almost $650 on school supplies this year.
Melissa Barker is a mother of three and benefiting from the donations and says this is a big break her family can really use.
“This is amazing to have this for the children,” said Barker.
Students from low income families are five times more likely to drop out of school than kids from high income families. PIE co-owner Craig Russell hopes this initiative will help prevent kids from dropping out of school.
“I think everybody deserves the opportunity; I’ve seen the dropout rates from the government subsidized housing and it’s alarming,” said Russell.
Donations for other backpack programs can still be made next week at the Children’s Aid Society of Simcoe County.
