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Tools for School requests up

Students receiving school supplies through the Westlock and District FCSS Tools for School charity program nearly tripled this year.
Demand for school supplies via the FCSS Tool for School program has tripled this year. The program is always accepting donation of supplies.
Demand for school supplies via the FCSS Tool for School program has tripled this year. The program is always accepting donation of supplies.

Students receiving school supplies through the Westlock and District FCSS Tools for School charity program nearly tripled this year.

The program, which provides school supplies to needy children, helped 31 students during its 2016 fall campaign, up from just nine students the previous year.

Despite need for the program increasing nearly three-fold, FCSS program coordinator Carol Kassian said that donations for Tools for School have been static throughout the two years of its operation, substantially reducing the programs long-term inventory.

“The donations were probably consistent, then that reflects on our inventory, which was definitely reduced this year,” she said.

“We were able to provide basic items, but we work on the inventory of items that we receive.”

Most of those consumable items can be stored at Westlock’s FCSS office, but there is always a need for more donations, she added.

“We look at pencils, pens, scribblers, paper, which are a lot of the consumables that students go through. We want to make sure that [students] have the basics to start with,” she said.

The program also accepts donations of long-term school supplies, such as backpacks, to make sure that students have everything they need to make it through the school year.

“We receive a plethora of stuff, from glue to scissors to erasers, even backpacks and lunch kits,” she said.

While most donations are concentrated during the program’s fall collection campaign, FCSS accepts donations of school supplies at any time.

Although many of the goods donated come from other parents, FCSS also accepts donations from organizations, including cash donations to help support the program.

“If people want to donate, we will accept items year-round,” she said.

“The shelf life on these items is relatively extensive, and when we’re talking about pencils, we look at the size and the volume of the item and we’re relatively well-spaced in that regard.”

While it’s possible the spike in program applications is a negative indicator, Kassian added that the spike may also be attributable to public knowledge about the resources available to less-advantaged students and families.

“We work on a referral basis through our schools,” she said.

“Last year, it was our first yeas, so as the program becomes more visible in a community, that may also account for the increase in numbers.”

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