Backpack Buddies BHHS Legacy Foundation and Legacy Connection join with other community organizations to bring essential items to Arizonaâs high-need children. BY KAREN WERNER
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n Arizona, one in every four children lives in poverty, severely impacting their ability to learn and succeed in school. Legacy Connection helps to break that cycle by giving thousands of students in the state the opportunity to start the school year with confidence. Legacy Connection collaborates with local organizations to support a wide range of programs, providing thousands of Arizona children with the essentials they need, but that their families canât afford. One such program is Back-to-School Clothing Driveâs âNew Clothes, New Beginningsâ distribution, a one-stop shopping oasis that takes place each July. There, more than 10,000 elementary schoolchildren from low-income families from dozens of Arizona schools receive everything from a new backpack filled with school supplies to new shoes, clothes, books and dental care â all the necessities to start the new school year with self-esteem. This yearâs event will take place July 17 to 20 at Grand Canyon University Arena. The event traces its roots to 1967, when the Salt River flooded and washed out many of the migrant camps along the riverbank. A group of women supported by âThe Order of True Sistersâ and other Phoenix agencies banded together to raise money to create handmade back-to-school clothes for the children of the migrant families. Fifty years later, Back-to-School Clothing Drive still strives to provide for students from Phoenix and its surrounding areas. Students who participate come from families living at or below the poverty level. So for many of these kids, these are the first new clothes and shoes theyâve ever owned. âItâs like Christmas in July for these children,â said Jerry Wissink, president and CEO of BHHS Legacy Foundation and Legacy Connection. âBy providing this assistance for them, theyâll be able to go back to school and not worry about how they look. That will help them concentrate on what they really need to be concentrating on â and thatâs learning.â âMany of the kids donât know what to expect when they get here, and when they do and they realize itâs all for them, you can see their faces light up,â said Karl Gentles, Back-toSchool Clothing Driveâs executive director. âThatâs a big deal for these kids that literally donât have a lot to start with. The impact weâre making on the individual child is immense.â The impact is not limited to Maricopa County. On July 19, at Mohave High School in Bullhead City, the Mohave Valley Clothe-a-Child Foundation will present the Tri-State 38
ARIZONA PHYSICIAN | June 2017
Legacy Backpack Buddies âDress Kids for Successâ event for Bullhead City, Mohave Valley and Topock elementary school students. The organization will hold a second event on August 9 for Laughlin, Nevada and Needles, California elementary school students, as well as all area Head Start students. All told, these events serve up to 3,000 kids. Legacy Connection also supports the Assistance League of Phoenix Operation School Bell Delivering Dreams Bus, a
Two Ways to Help 1) Donate Money â and BHHS Legacy Foundation will Double it! You can help Arizona kids start school with confidence, and help them pursue their dreams and contribute to our shared future, by making a donation to Legacy Connection. An $80 contribution to Legacy Connection provides $400 worth of clothing and supplies to a child in need. And donations to Legacy Connection programs are matched by BHHS Legacy Foundation, which means a $400 gift becomes $800, which goes directly to clothing an Arizona child in need. Plus, when you give to Legacy Connection, you can take advantage of the Arizona Charitable Organization Tax Credit. A $400 contribution to Legacy Connection means decreasing your Arizona tax bill â or increasing your refund â by $400. Your gift ends up costing you nothing! And your donation â plus BHHS Legacy Foundationâs matching funds â will benefit the programs Legacy serves. Visit bhhslegacy.org or call 602-778-1200 to donate today. By making a gift, youâre not only transforming a childâs life, youâre strengthening Arizonaâs future. 2) Donate Services Back-to-School Clothing Drive relies on more than 2,000 volunteers to make the âNew Clothes, New Beginningsâ event happen for the 5,000 students who will be onsite at various times during the week of July 17. Volunteers are needed for every aspect of the event, including stuffing backpacks, registering and welcoming students, and escorting students through each department as a Personal Shopper. If youâre interested in volunteering, visit backtoschoolclothingdrive.com/volunteer for information and to choose a volunteer time slot.