Church in Illinois hands out hundreds of backpacks of school supplies for to students for the upcoming school year

On Saturday, Whiteash Free Will Baptist Church of Marion gaveaway around 300 backpacks of school supplies. It has over 200 more backpacks likely to be given out at later dates.

“We know that how this school year will look is still a bit uncertain, but students will still need supplies, whether they are in the classroom or remote learning from home,” said Lee.

This year is very different from the others due to the covid-19. Lee said that the pandemic altered some of their plans because they held the activity  outdoors instead of indoors with no free lunch or haircuts.

“We have received more requests from people who weren’t able to come to the event. We are coordinating to be able to fulfill those requests.” 

Lee said that the team of volunteers took advantage of the opportunity to go about the waiting cars to share the Gospel. She described the event as more of a “drive through” gathering.

“Our greatest desire is for people to come to know Jesus and the hope He gives. We also want them to know that Whiteash Free Will Baptist Church cares about our community, and we strive to show the love of Christ in everything we do,” she said.

Supplies in the backpacks

The backpacks included crayons, markers, pencils, and scissors for younger students and binders, notebook paper, folders, pens and pencils for older students.

Whiteash’s charity to help students comes amid local, state, and national debates over the extent to which schools should reopen come the fall academic year.

Earlier this month, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos garnered controversy when she stated that schools should reopen for in-person instruction by the fall or face budget cuts.

“American investment in education is a promise to students and their families. If schools aren’t going to reopen and not fulfill that promise, they shouldn’t get the funds, and give it to the families to decide to go to a school that is going to meet that promise,” said DeVos on Fox News Sunday.

“There’s going to be the exception to the rule, but the rule should be that kids go back to school this fall … And where there are little flare-ups or hot spots, that can be dealt with on a school by school or a case by case basis.”

Meanwhile, several school districts, including many in California where the COVID-19 infection rate is severe, have voted to hold online-only courses for the upcoming semester.

In a statement justifying their decision, Long Beach Unified School District quoted Dr. Barbara Ferrer, health officer for the Los Angeles County Department of Health.

“The virus currently rages on in our community, and we’ll need to continue to do our best to protect our children, our teachers and the many important people who make school function and who educate our children,” stated Ferrer.

Source: The Christian Post