Inn collecting school supplies for more than 1,200 local children

The Inn of the Good Shepherd is collecting school supplies to help more than 1,200 local children start the new school year prepared. Donations of backpacks and grade-appropriate supplies are being accepted ahead of the program’s Aug. 29 distribution.

With another school year approaching, The Inn of the Good Shepherd is asking the community to help make sure local children arrive in the classroom with the supplies they need.

The Sarnia organization is once again collecting school supplies for its annual Back to School program, which provides more than 1,200 children with backpacks filled with grade-appropriate supplies.

The program is one of The Inn’s largest annual efforts aimed specifically at children and families.

Backpacks are prepared according to students’ grades, helping provide children with the supplies they need for their first day of school rather than leaving families to cover the entire expense themselves.

Last year, The Inn reported distributing 1,200 backpacks filled with grade-appropriate supplies through the program. The organization has received support for the initiative from local businesses, service clubs and community organizations, including the Golden K Kiwanis Club, Suncor, Staples, Manley’s and the Catherine Wilson Foundation.

But individual community donations also help fill those backpacks.

The Inn says school supplies for all grades are welcome and can be dropped off at its 115 John St. location in Sarnia.

Families registered for the program will begin picking up their Back to School kits later this month, with a distribution scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 29 from 9 a.m. to noon at Temple Baptist Church, 1410 Quinn Dr.

For The Inn, the goal is simple: make sure the cost of pencils, notebooks, backpacks and other classroom essentials does not prevent a child from starting the school year prepared.