JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas –
On Monday, the Joint Base San Antonio School Liaison Office kicks off its sixth annual Build-a-Backpack Program to provide backpacks and school supplies to children of active-duty members and to students in the local community.
The school liaison office will be accepting donated backpacks filled with school supplies for children in kindergarten through 12th grade at several locations throughout JBSA until Aug. 10.
“The purpose of this event is to provide children with the tools they need to help them become successful in school,” said Angela Green, JBSA-Randolph School Liaison Office military child education specialist.
Green said backpacks and school supplies collected will go toward children of active-duty members who are experiencing unique circumstances or hardships.
Schoolchildren of active-duty members who are deployed, on extended temporary duty or on a remote tour of duty are also eligible.
The names of the families and children who are eligible to receive backpacks and school supplies are provided to the school liaison office by first sergeants from JBSA units or other referral agents. After the backpacks have been collected, family members will be contacted for distribution Aug. 15-19.
JBSA members, groups, squadrons and units who donate backpacks and school supplies can specify the age group designation of the child who will receive it. They have the choice of filling the backpack with supplies for a student in grades K-5 or 6-12. A list of school supplies for grades K-5 and 6-12 and label designations for age groups can be found at http://www.jbsa.mil/Resources/Military-Family-Readiness/School-Liaison-Office, in the 2016 Build-a-Backpack document.
In addition, anyone who donates a backpack is allowed to write a note to the child who will use it.
“We ask them to put a positive, encouraging note in the backpack,” Green said.
Back-to-school time can be stressful for military families, especially for those on a tight budget and in transition, said Lori Phipps, JBSA-Lackland School Liaison Office military child education specialist.
“We just want to ease that stress at back-to-school time,” she said. “It is a true team effort to give back to our community and to make sure our family members in need are taken care of.”
Last year, the Build-a-Backpack Program collected 600 backpacks and 35 additional boxes of school supplies for 800 children from JBSA and the local community, including economically disadvantaged students in five school districts surrounding JBSA locations. Since the Build-a-Backpack Program started in 2010, 2,500 schoolchildren have received backpacks and school supplies.
When children come with their parents to pick up their backpacks filled with school supplies, there are various reactions from both the children and the parents when they see the backpack, Phipps said.
“We have smiles, giggles, laughter and pride,” she said. “They are proud of that backpack. The parents are grateful and appreciative. They are excited because of the smile on their kid’s face.”
Green said the participation of many JBSA members in donating backpacks and school supplies and volunteering to sort and distribute backpacks has made the Build-a-Backpack Program into a community event.
“It’s been a time that shows our entire community really goes out to try and support our kids,” Green said. “It shows that they support education. There are a lot of people who feel education is important and feel that there is a need to try to help these kids get a great start.”
Donation sites for backpacks and school supplies include: JBSA-Lackland Military & Family Readiness Center, building 1249, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday-Friday; JBSA-Lackland Library, building 6114, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday-Sunday; JBSA-Randolph Military & Family Readiness Center, building 693, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday-Friday; JBSA-Randolph Library, building 598, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday; and the Keith Campbell Memorial Library at JBSA-Fort Sam Houston, building 1222, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday-Sunday.
For information on the Build-a-Backpack Program, call the JBSA School Liaison Office at 671-8388 or 652-5321.