It’s tough to make the grade if a student doesn’t have a notebook for English, a calculator for math... a backpack full of basic school supplies.
Following a presentation by a regional Salvation Army representative, members of the Lions stated they were surprised to learn of the number of YME District youth that do not have the means for bare essential school materials and that it was teachers, reaching into their own pockets, who were making up the difference.
So the Granite Falls Lions responded by doing what they do best: they lent a helping hand.
Appointing a four person committee – Kay Bestland, Bob Thoma, Jason Hoff and Jim Fromm – to a lead an effort to supply needy students with school supplies, Lions members have been seeking assistance from a host of local businesses and individuals. Citizen’s State Bank raised money selling root beer floats, one business donated ten boxes of notebooks, some items were sold at-cost by local suppliers while other individuals or employers simply wrote out checks.
It was a summer long effort with tangible results, and this past Thursday Lions’ members gathered to assemble the bounty by stuffing brand new backpacks with brand new requisite school supplies so that every child was prepared this brand new school year.
Backpacks were not earmarked for particular students. Instead, when school began Tuesday, those youth who arrived in the classroom without were merely sent to the office where they were handed one of the 60-plus packs prepared by the community organization.
The Lions expect the present number of packs to be sufficient, but the first year of the effort will assuredly help them to gauge the level of future initiatives. Bestland said that she was pleased with the year-one effort and that the Lions intend to make it an annual event.
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It’s tough to make the grade if a student doesn’t have a notebook for English, a calculator for math... a backpack full of basic school supplies.
Following a presentation by a regional Salvation Army representative, members of the Lions stated they were surprised to learn of the number of YME District youth that do not have the means for bare essential school materials and that it was teachers, reaching into their own pockets, who were making up the difference.
So the Granite Falls Lions responded by doing what they do best: they lent a helping hand.
Appointing a four person committee – Kay Bestland, Bob Thoma, Jason Hoff and Jim Fromm – to a lead an effort to supply needy students with school supplies, Lions members have been seeking assistance from a host of local businesses and individuals. Citizen’s State Bank raised money selling root beer floats, one business donated ten boxes of notebooks, some items were sold at-cost by local suppliers while other individuals or employers simply wrote out checks.
It was a summer long effort with tangible results, and this past Thursday Lions’ members gathered to assemble the bounty by stuffing brand new backpacks with brand new requisite school supplies so that every child was prepared this brand new school year.
Backpacks were not earmarked for particular students. Instead, when school began Tuesday, those youth who arrived in the classroom without were merely sent to the office where they were handed one of the 60-plus packs prepared by the community organization.
The Lions expect the present number of packs to be sufficient, but the first year of the effort will assuredly help them to gauge the level of future initiatives. Bestland said that she was pleased with the year-one effort and that the Lions intend to make it an annual event.
