Pens, Pencils, Backpacks, Notebooks, Oh My!

One Local Association’s Annual School Supplies Drive Collects Supplies for All 8 of Its City’s School Districts

BY LAURA KRUSZEWSKI, TUCSON ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® MARKETING MANAGER

It may seem like the school year is weeks away, but back-to-school time is rapidly approaching. And this time of year means one thing – time to stock up on school supplies! Unfortunately, not all students can afford basic back-to-school essentials such as backpacks, notebooks and binders. That’s why the Tucson Association of REALTORS® (TAR) has stepped up to collect school supplies.

This school supply drive began in the summer of 2007 with volunteers standing in front of an office supplies store collecting donations for one school district. It has since snowballed to include donation boxes in all Tucson-area Walgreens accumulating donations for each of Tucson’s eight school districts  throughout the month of July.

TAR has partnered with local media, News 4 Tucson KVOA’s Kristi’s Kids, for the past three years to help spread the word. Several other local businesses have signed on to be donation drop-off points, including the 15 Wendy’s locations in town, who are offering a free Jr. Frosty when you bring in a donation.

We couldn’t do this without the support of our members, who also collect school supplies within their offices and help pick up all the donations at the various Walgreens locations. The community and our members are encouraged to bring their donations to TAR on Friday, August 3 for the final collection day. The supplies will be distributed directly to each district the following Monday.

The association hopes to fill 14 school buses at the end of the drive, doubling last year’s efforts, which filled 7 school buses.

To learn more, visit the School Supplies Drive website!