Tulsa Nonprofit To Hold School Supply Giveaway For Students On Friday

Tulsa area students will return to the classroom next week and Restore Hope Ministries is making sure they do not do so empty-handed.

Restore Hope Ministries is known for providing food and rent assistance, but each year in August the nonprofit also helps families with school supplies.

Executive Director Jeff Jaynes said the effort, known as Project School Supplies, started over 30 years ago.

He said, "In 1990, a woman came to us and handed us a $300 check and said she was the only kid in class that did not have the supplies she needed to go through the school year and did not want any kid to be as embarrassed as she was."

Project School Supplies has since helped thousands of kids and families. Sara Berger found out about this year's giveaway and said it is a relief.

"I am a single mother of four and I am in school full-time, so this opportunity is extremely helpful to me and my family," she added.

The school supply kits are organized by grade level and each one contains basic items like folders, notebooks, pencils, markers, colored pencils, glue, and scissors.

"We look at school lists across all of Tulsa County and we try to match up as close as we can," said Jaynes.

The project is a big help to Berger who hopes to send her kids back to school with a smile. "They get excited when I get them a new pack of crayons, so they are going to be so excited to see their backpacks full of new stuff and ready to start the school year," she said.

Which is what Project School Supplies is all about. "We want those kids to thrive and the single best way we can break the cycle of poverty is through education," said Jaynes.

The free school supply giveaway is happening through Friday, August 11 at 2960 Charles Page Blvd. from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. To qualify, a child must be in grades Pre-K through 12 and attending a Tulsa County public school.

Parents and guardians must bring their photo ID, social security cards for themselves and their kids, and their child's proof of birth date.