A line formed last week as WCA passed out backpacks filled with school supplies, just as it has done in years past to help parents and children get ready for the start of school.
A line of parents and students stretched across the Wrangell Cooperative Association parking lot last Friday, waiting for the doors to open at 10 a.m. Some families arrived a half hour in advance to ensure that they would be among the first to enter the building.
But it wasn't a rock concert or a new iPhone that drew this substantial queue downtown. They came for the free backpacks, filled with school supplies, that were being distributed by WCA.
Before the beginning of each new school year, WCA partners with the Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska in Juneau to provide backpacks and other back-to-school essentials to Native youth. According to Esther Aaltséen Reese, WCA administrator, this initiative is motivated by the tribe's desire to support its citizens. "We have a specific focus on our elders and youth," she said.
Backpacks can range from $50 to $100 and the cost of supplies like notebooks, pencils and calculators can add up, especially for families with multiple school-age children. The program, explained Reese, is a way to "help support the children of our community ... and take some of the financial burden off parents."
A few minutes before doors opened, Parker Mork was waiting near the back of the line with his grandma, Marilyn. Last year, he had gotten a camo-print backpack for kindergarten, and was hoping that he would be able to nab another camo-print backpack for first grade. Many equally eager students stood between him and the front of the line.
As the doors opened and families flowed into the WCA Cultural Center, Tlingit and Haida community navigator Tammi Meissner, X'atshaawditee, sat just outside, distributing another school season must-have - free at-home COVID tests. She laughed and chatted with attendees, encouraging them to take three tests per child.
Inside, tables were laden with colorful school bags arranged by gender and age range, from a variety of brands including Dakine, Nike, Jansport and Under Armour. Lorraine Ogland selected an orange and green floral backpack from the pile and put it on. "The backpacks are a lot nicer than the ones last year," said Vanessa Aitken as she assisted a group of three children, Beau, James and Lorraine, with their backpacks.
By 10:15 a.m., the first wave of students had filtered out of the building, taking their backpacks, their school supplies and their bags of snacks with them. Reese observed that many of the leftover packs were in shades of blue. "Every single year, I request more red," she explained. "Petersburg is our rival town and their (school) colors are blue. Ours are red. No one wants a blue backpack here."
Those who missed last Friday's pickup window can still get a backpack by contacting WCA, though they may have to settle for a blue one. Non-Native students and families can contact the American Legion to pick up backpacks.
Parker, however, won't have to settle. Though he didn't get the camo print backpack he had envisioned, he got one that he liked even better. "It has rainbow colors all mixed and it's Under Armour," he said excitedly. His new rainbow pack will get its classroom debut on Thursday, when school starts.
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