David Michel

An amazing event took place on Sunday, a helpful initiative from Back to School Shop and its volunteers who distributed backpacks loaded with school supplies and other goodies including a $100 gift certificate to some of the most vulnerable families in Stamford.

I was happy to be there. It was moving to see heartfelt reactions from parents.

You know, these are rough times and, quite frankly, more of these initiatives will be needed.

Thank you to my good colleague Matt Blumenthal for being there as well in support!"

I'm including the press release from the event Back to School Shop event below. It was nice to see everyone and being a part of such an important initiative for Stamford residents was just as rewarding.

Covid Didn’t Stop Stamford’s Back to School Shop
Organization Supplies Nearly 350 Students in Drive-Thru Event

Stamford, CT, August 31, 2020–Back to School Shop, Inc., an all-volunteer community organization, held its sixth annual event on Sunday, August 30, at Davenport Ridge Elementary School in Stamford. Parents of nearly 350 children from the Stamford public elementary schools, who had been registered in advance by their school social workers, drove through the parking lot at appointed times to take delivery of backpacks full of school supplies, toiletries, hat, gloves, and a book. Parents were also given a $100 Target gift card for each child, to help them finish their back to school shopping. Families whose children were registered but not able to make it to the school on Sunday will have their items delivered to their elementary school for them.

In a normal year, the elementary school gym would be turned into a store where children could shop for free with a volunteer “personal shopper” for backpacks, school supplies, sneakers, winter coats, and clothing, while their parents visited the onsite Japha Family Resource Center to meet with representatives of various community agencies that provide services important to families. But 2020 is not a normal year.

Because of Covid-19, this year’s event was held outdoors with just 36 volunteers across two shifts. Backpacks full of school items and gift cards were handed into participants’ cars and everyone was masked and maintained appropriate social distance. Families only left their cars in a special area set aside to take their pictures with the organization’s school bus mascot. This year there was no Japha Family Resource Center. Instead, participating families were given a list of area resources and their contact information.

“In the early days of the pandemic we hoped we would still be able to have our traditional event. We had worked all year to raise the funds and buy the clothing and school supplies for the pop-up store, but there was just no way it could be done safely” said Jane Levene, Co-Founder and Co-Chair of Back to School Shop. “We’re delighted that we were able to put together an event that adheres to all safety guidelines, protects our volunteers and families and still enables us to provide assistance and to create some excitement for the start of the new school year for our families, many of whom have had a difficult year.”

The modified event came as welcome news to the Stamford mother of two participating children who reached out to the organization when she heard that the event would be different this year. She was concerned because she counted on the Back to School Shop event to provide new sneakers and a new winter coats for her children. When reassured that she would receive a gift card for each child that she could use to buy a coat and sneakers, she exclaimed, “Thank you very much-my heart cries with joy knowing that my children will have their shoes and coat!”

The participating families were extremely grateful when they realized that they would be receiving a gift card to help shop for school clothes in addition to the backpack and school items. A mom of two elementary schoolers said “I am so thankful! It was so great to get the supplies and now I can buy my children clothes too. As one dad of three expressed, “we really appreciate the program. It does help us a lot because not a lot of us have the financial support to do back to school shopping.”

Superintendent of Stamford Public Schools, Dr. Tamu Lucero, was present for the event, as she has been each year. Dr. Lucero remarked, “The Stamford Public School District appreciates the willingness of the Back to School Shop to once again support students in our school community. The fact that the organizers found a unique way in the midst of a health pandemic to still help in such a meaningful and impactful way speaks volumes! I am honored to continue to watch this event grow each year and note how it truly makes a difference for our Stamford families.”

State Representatives Matt Blumenthal and David Michel also attended the event and they pitched in to help hand out backpacks to participants. Michel said he was “so touched by the reaction of the families. A number of the parents cried when they realized that they were receiving gift cards in addition to the filled backpacks. It was very meaningful for them and they were so grateful for the support.”

Blumenthal added, “Every child deserves to arrive on the first day of school feeling proud, confident, and ready to learn -- regardless of their family's circumstances. Thank you to the volunteers of Back to School Shop for making that possible for hundreds of children for the sixth straight year, even in the face of a global pandemic. I look forward to celebrating Back to School Shop’s work -- and these kids' success -- for many years to come."

“We are really thrilled with the way this Covid version of Back to School Shop worked this year, and so very grateful to the supporters and volunteers who made it possible, including the many Back to School Shop supporters who wrote personal notes of encouragement to go into the backpack of each child” expressed Meryl Japha, Co-Founder and Co-Chair of Back to School Shop. “Of course we miss giving the children the opportunity to browse through all the new items and pick out their own clothes, and we miss our larger community of volunteers- in a normal year we would have had nearly 250 volunteers on site today. Here’s hoping that things are back to a good healthy normal next year!”

Since its inception Back to School Shop has outfitted over 1500 Stamford children, and mobilized over 1000 community volunteers.

Each child at the Back to School Shop event received a backpack filled with school supplies, toiletries, hat and gloves, as well as a book and a gift card to purchase clothing or additional items needed for school. (Photo by Beth Shepherd Peters)

Cars lined up in the driveway of Davenport Ridge Elementary School for their turn to pick up their Back to School items. (Photograph by Beth Shepherd Peters)

Dr. Tamu Lucero, Superintendent of Schools, greets program participants and helps distribute backpacks. (Photograph by Beth Shepherd Peters)

A family outing to pick up their back to school items. (Photograph by Beth Shepherd Peters)

State Representative David Michel, District 146, distributes gift cards to families at the Back to School Shop event. (Photograph by Beth Shepherd Peters)

State Representative Matt Blumenthal, District 147, helps load backpacks into the cars of participants. (Photograph by Beth Shepherd Peters)

Wearing her new backpack home. (Photograph by Beth Shepherd Peters)

Happy Customers at Sunday’s Back to School Shop event! (Photograph by Beth Shepherd Peters)