With the help of a generous supporter, we doubled our backpack giveaways this year—and added a twist
“I love, love, love, love drawing and I love Marvel!” said Alex, stenciling the Deadpool logo on his new backpack. Next to him, his older brother Andrew was adding Marvel characters and logos to his, too. The little details and differences between them instantly showed how each went from “A backpack” to “MY backpack.”
Every year, Goddard gives away backpacks and school supplies to help families get ready for the new academic year. We’re grateful for the generous support of the KULU Foundation, which donated 1000 backpacks—enough for four giveaways across the Upper West Side, Upper East Side and Harlem, instead of our usual two.
And this year we added a twist. Volunteers offered the children trendy charms for their bags: emoji pins, large taco charms, keychains with little green aliens that could stick to walls, and an assortment of buttons with affirmations like “Awesome!”
At our Stanley M. Isaacs Neighborhood Center, children and parents also had access to a wide collection of stencils to color in with permanent markers—from flowers to letters to the aforementioned superheroes.
“It doesn’t make it look basic, and I can get a lot of compliments,” little Jaelani said as he decorated his backpack.
Hundreds of young people left ready for the first day of school. Many were proudly wearing their backpacks, with school supplies and free books stuffed inside—and expressions of their individuality on the outside.