Salvation Army Sponsors School Supply Giveaway In Kingston

KINGSTON, NY — School will be starting sooner than one thinks, and children and parents all over the Hudson Valley are gathering school supplies in preparation for the day classes start.

To give some families a boost in getting their children ready for the first day of school, the Salvation Army Kingston Corps is hosting its annual backpack giveaway Friday.

The Salvation Army is partnering with Romeo Ford to make sure children return to school with high-quality backpacks and school supplies.

The reason behind the giveaway is more than just giving children the supplies they need, but also the confidence to focus on learning.

This year, there are a total of 69 families, with 148 children, who will benefit from the giveaway, Salvation Army Captain Erik Muhs told Patch.

Each backpack will be filled with basic school necessities such as binders, notebooks, pens, pencils, rulers, crayons, colored pencils, hand sanitizer and more, he said.

Tyrone Cobb, a Salvation Army pantry worker, said he’s lived in Kingston for the past five years and has seen the needs of the community.

“I am proud to see how we, as the Salvation Army, are able to help with school supplies,” he told Patch. “Our employees and daily volunteer see how our efforts make a difference in our community and want to continue to be a part of it.”

Muhs said that, besides Romeo Ford being the largest donor of supplies, there are two other agencies that are also doing school supplies drives.

“Between the three of us,” he said, “we can help lower-income families afford the items needed for starting the 2023-24 school year.”