St. Andrew Catholic School, along with other Catholic schools in the Diocese of Venice, will help children who live on the islands of St. Lucia and St. Vincent by donating backpacks filled with supplies.
AnneMarie Marron, faculty representative for the Holy Childhood Association, said every year the children are introduced to a different project. The whole purpose of the Holy Childhood Association, which has been in existence for at least 50 years, is “children helping children,” she added.
This year, St. Andrew Catholic School, along with many other Catholic schools from Naples to Sarasota, are participating in the Kids 4 Others Mission Backpack program that will benefit children who live in St. Lucia and St. Vincent. Marron said their goal is to deliver more than 1,500 backpacks to the children in August.
Marron said children who live in St. Lucia and St. Vincent are not allowed to go to school unless they have school supplies, along with a uniform that costs $3.
“It is more applicable for children to help out,” Marron said about the backpack program.
A packet was sent home with each child in February to explain what the project entails. Marron said the packet included a “promissory note” that the student signed stating that he/she will donate their backpack they used all year filled with school supplies during the last week of school.
For those families who are encountering a financial hardship, she said they can donate some of the supplies or just a backpack, whatever they can afford.
So far, Marron said between 30-40 students have already turned in their promissory letter to participate.
Each grade level, kindergarten through eighth grade, has its own list of supplies that the student can donate. The backpacks will include the age, gender and grade of the child donating the supplies, along with a list of all the items inside.
A note of encouragement and hope from each child will be placed in the backpack as well.
Marron said the child also can include their first name and school address in the backpack, so a pen pal arrangment can be formed between the students.
Marron said the backpacks will be supervised along its journey to St. Lucia and St. Vincent by the Diocese of Venice high school youth groups.
She said the youth group will deliver the backpacks to the students.
The backpacks will begin to trickle in during the week of May 23, during the last week of school at St. Andrew Catholic School.