Two Richmond County school buses, adorned with sponsorship banners, were parked outside Walmart on Monday, signaling the start of the 16th annual Stuff the Bus campaign.
The event, a joint effort between United Way of Richmond County and Richmond County Schools, aims to gather school supplies for students whose families may need assistance as the new academic year begins.
Michelle Parrish, executive director of United Way of Richmond County, highlighted the strong community support despite a slight decline in sponsorship.
“This year, we had 59 sponsors, down from 66 last year. In previous years, we had 60 sponsors in 2022 and 53 in 2021,” Parrish explained.
She praised the Richmond County businesses and individual sponsors, stating, “They showed up and showed out to support our students in need to make sure they have a good start to their school year.”
Thanks to the generosity of sponsors and community members, more than $10,000 was raised before the shopping spree began. Volunteers from REV Federal Credit Union, Planet Fitness, T-Mobile, and the Richmond County Chamber of Commerce assisted in filling carts with essential supplies. Meanwhile, Beta Club members from Richmond Senior High School and Richmond Early College engaged shoppers at the Walmart entrances, encouraging donations.
The campaign saw an impressive haul of 47,936 items, including pallets of paper, pens, pencils, crayons, erasers, notebooks and folders. After the buses were packed to the brim, the supplies were sorted based on the needs of each school. On Wednesday, Beta Club members delivered the items to the respective schools, where school administration and counselors will oversee their distribution to students.
In addition to the school supplies, the Richmond County Partnership for Children had a table at the event, where they handed out free books and promoted their affiliation with the Dolly Parton Imagination Library. Gael Palletts distributed 300 backpacks filled with supplies and hot dogs were also available. Tina Miller and her State Farm Insurance team provided water and cookies to participants.
Parrish expressed her gratitude to all involved, saying, “I would like to thank all of the Stuff the Bus event sponsors, volunteers, and the community for making this a very successful event.”
The continued success of the Stuff the Bus campaign ensures that students across Richmond County will have the resources they need to thrive as they head back to school.
