Schools
Family Giving Tree Says No to San Jose Sharks Backpacks
Bay Area charitable organization gives backpacks to Garfield Middle School and Menlo Park elementary students, declines to distribute Sharks backpacks.
The Family Giving Tree is now accepting backpack donations for the 2011-2012 school year, and plans to distribute them to students at and , starting August 10.
Since its inception as an MBA project at San Jose State University, the philanthropic organization has faced some unique challenges in the Bay Area, said Program Manager Al Galan.
“This year’s new wrinkle is no Sharks logos,” Galan said, “Somehow the sports team is being affiliated with gangs in Sunnyvale.”
Galan noted that this disappointed him, as he is a San Jose Sharks fan.
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The Famliy Giving Tree has collected about 5,000 backpacks in a 20,000 square foot warehouse in Milpitas, California during this year's back-to-school drive, according to Galan. About 2,000 were donated, while the rest were purchased with donated money.
Read the on Menlo Park Patch.
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