School may have just begun for Wrangell students, but they can’t rightly start without notebooks, pencils and other supplies. For those still needing materials, the Wrangell Cooperative Association will be holding its annual backpack giveaway on Wednesday.
Last year 85 new backpacks were distributed to area
students, each laden with brand new school materials. But due to cutbacks, this year’s program was only going to be able to acquire around 20.
Knowing some donors, the program’s organizer, Carol Snoddy, decided to see if she could acquire some additional bags.
“I wanted to know where I can get a price,” she said.
So she first called Costco in Juneau to get a price estimate. After being passed around between a couple of emplo
yees, Snoddy’s call was
transferred a third time. Shewas
surprised to find that the woman on the other end
had turned her question from how much to how many.
“She said, ‘So you need
seventy-five?” Costco then put together backpacks for the
program free of charge, filling them with school goods. “I was shocked beyond belief, and I thanked her profusely,” Snoddy said.
Then there came the
problem of how to transport them. Inquiries led Snoddy to a staffer at the Alaska Marine Lines office in Juneau. After checking with his bosses,
she recalled “he said ‘We’ll ship them for free.’”
The materials arrive on Tuesday, and the Tlingit-Haida Regional Housing Authority will provide space at its SNO building to keep and distribute the packs. The backpacks will be given out starting at 3 p.m. on Wednesday.
Registration is required,
and packs will be available
on a first-come, first-serve basis. “They have to sign
up down here,” Snoddy explained. “I need to keep a tally.”
She said about 40 people have already signed up. Forms are available inside the WCA-IGAP office, which is open on weekdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
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