Community members from St. Joseph and the surrounding area donated 22,465 school supply items during the United Way Stuff the Bus school supplies drive.

The drive was held Friday and Saturday at both St. Joseph Walmart locations.

In addition, community members donated nearly $3,000 to allow United Way to purchase supplies that were not donated. According to a press release from United Way, community members have donated more than 200,000 school supply items since United Way Stuff the Bus began in 2009.

The collected school supplies will be distributed through United Way Partner Agencies and Programs including The Salvation Army. The Salvation Army Back to School Fair equips children with the supplies they need, and might not have otherwise had, to start the school year off prepared. The Salvation Army is prepared to serve more than 700 children at their Back to School Fair on August 9.

“In this, the tenth year of the event, the community has once again stuffed the bus many times over and we couldn’t be more grateful,” said United Way of Greater St. Joseph President, Kylee Strough. “We wish to extend our sincere appreciation to Walmart, hundreds of volunteers, thousands of shoppers & donors, our presenting sponsor, Mosaic Life Care and other sponsors, for making this weekend’s event a great success! Thank you to the community for coming together to ensure children can start school with the tools and supplies needed to be successful in the classroom.”

Families who may need assistance with school supplies collected from this year’s United Way Stuff the Bus School Supplies Drive are encouraged to call The Salvation Army at (816) 232-5824 on Friday, August 10. United Way Stuff the Bus School Supplies Drive is a project of the United Way Volunteer Center.

For more information about United Way, go to stjosephunitedway.org, like United Way of Greater St. Joseph on Facebook or
follow UnitedWayStJoe on Twitter.