#TheGreat580 Hosts Back to School Giveaway

LAWTON, Okla. (KSWO) - A Lawton organization hosted a student and teacher school supply giveaway at Cameron Baptist church to help kids get ready to go back to class.

It is tax free weekend in Oklahoma, but one expense parents won’t save on this weekend is school supplies. This weekend’s discount only applies to certain types of apparel and footwear. To help offset the cost of sending kids back to class, #TheGreat580 hosted a school supply drive for teachers and students.

One of the groups volunteers, Stephanie Overby, is also a kindergarten teacher and said “we do have a lot of students who are not able to afford some of this stuff and for them not to get the education that they need just because they couldn’t afford not to purchase certain items, I don’t think that’s fair.”

Parents could claim a backpack full of supplies online and pick it up. Teachers that presented their school I.D. could chose whatever they needed for class. Leftover supplies were handed out at the end of the event so none of it was wasted.

Overby said events like this help teachers because the school supplies they have last longer when students show up to class prepared.

“Doing this, coming here, kind of alleviates some of the stuff I would have to buy. So, extra pencils and things like that, I don’t really worry about that because i know I’ve been to one of these events that are really put on by the community to help teachers,” Overby said.

The group fundraised about $4,000 and collected supply donations from the community throughout the summer. Then, they used the money to purchase everything students would nee to start school. This is the fifth time #TheGreat580 has out together a school supply drive, but organizers said this year was the largest they have hosted yet.

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