Local Groups Help Low-Income Students Get School Supplies

Tax free weekend is underway in Texas and New Mexico and local groups are making sure students from low income families have the school supplies they need to start the year.

Volunteers at the Houchen Community Center in the Segundo Barrio handed out free school supplies Saturday morning.

“We have our back to school bash. I think we’ve got almost 100 volunteers registered,” said Kathy Jewell with the Houchen Center.

The group was hoping to distribute 600 backpacks with school supplies like pens, paper, and notebooks.

“As a mother of two children, knowing that back to school can be very stressful, we wanted to make sure that what we provided to the families was purposeful, and that impacted their family and helped them be successful in school,” said Laura Neill, the president of the Houchen Board of Directors.

Neill told ABC-7 her board put a lot of thought into what families actually need to get their kids ready for school this year.

“This year we were actually able to execute (our goals) by also giving away uniforms with our backpacks,” said Neill. “We even have free haircuts and free physicals for all the students going into athletics this year.”

In Northeast El Paso, the Rotary Club is hoping to provide school supplies for students who attend some of the area’s neediest schools.

“The last two years, we were able to support three schools with mounds and mounds of supplies,” said Kelly McCullough. “It’s amazing how generous the folks in the Northeast are.”

If you would like to help the Rotary Club of Northeast El Paso, call (915) 329-0824.

For information on how to donate to the Houchen Community Center, call (915) 533-6445.