Garden City Library Hosting School Supply Drive

GARDEN CITY, NY — Long Island Coalition for the Homeless (LICH) is is seeking support for its Back Pack Pirates Summer festival and Supply Our Students Drive. Each year, LICH conducts a summer-long supply drive in an effort to collect as many backpacks and school essentials to distribute to children in need on Long Island. The Back Pack Pirates Festival kicks off the distribution during a pirate-themed summer camp event for almost 500 children who are homeless and in foster care programs on Long Island.

There will be a collection box inside the Garden City Public Library. Needed supplies include staplers, staples, index cards, calculators, pencil cases, protractors, pencil sharpeners, lunch boxes, highlighters, paper clips, 3-hole punches, white out, permanent markers, backpacks and Post-its. Donations will be accepted at the library through July 29.

All new school supplies and backpacks collected during the drive will be distributed to children living in shelters on Long Island. Most will be distributed at the festival, and any remaining supplies will be distributed to shelter staff members and non-profits afterwards.

Located in Amityville, the non-profit serves homeless individuals and families in Nassau and Suffolk Counties. For more information, visit www.addressthehomeless.org.