7000 Backpacks Distributed to New Orleans Schools

From a New Orleans Saints Press release (via Paul Corliss)

New Orleans Saints safety Steve Gleason and his “One Sweet World Foundation” will donate and distribute nearly 7,000 backpacks to New Orleans Public School students as schools prepare to re-open next semester. The program, entitled “Backpacks for Hope,” will be kicked off with an initial backpack distribution event at Ben Franklin Elementary School on Monday, Dec. 19 at 11 a.m.

The event will be attended by Gleason and teammate Shad Meier, a Saints tight end. All backpacks – filled with school supplies and books – were collected through a post-Katrina drive organized by Gleason and his mother, Gail, in the safety’s native Pacific Northwest. Most of the backpacks were collected through a stadium drive for early-season football games at Gleason's alma mater, Washington State University.

In addition to the backpacks, the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, Inc. (NOJO) will provide VIP passes to its Annual Holiday Concert to the first 50 students to pick up backpacks at the event. The holiday concert, headlined by NOJO Artistic Director Irvin Mayfield, takes place on Wednesday, Dec. 21 at Christ Church Cathedral. The VIP passes include a special meet-and-greet with Mayfield.

"Our children are grateful for the generosity of Steve Gleason and his mother, as well as that of the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra," said Phyllis Landrieu of the Orleans Parish School Board. "Superintendent Ora Watson and Ben Franklin Principal Christine Mitchell will welcome the Saints and oversee the back pack distribution."

7000 Backpacks Collected!!

WOW!
Thanks to all those who donated a backpack to the Backpacks for Hope Project at WSU! Here are some quick photos of the Backpack collection at the WSU-Stanford football game Saturday October 8th.

Diane Kennedy and Fay Alm delivered the backpacks from Gess Elementary in Chewelah.

Part of the crew at the CUB collection site.

A small pile of backpacks ready to be sorted and packed at the Visitor's Center.

The Gess Elementary Backpacks were delivered to the Alumni Center by these great people.

Gail Gleason thanks the WSU moving crew for taking all the boxes from our 4 collection sites to the storage room!

Schools Collect Backpacks

Many teachers and schools have had class projects where students collected materials and filled backpacks to donate to the Backpacks for Hope Project. Below are photos of just a couple of examples where classroom teachers, their students, and/or schools participated in the Backpacks for Hope Project. A Hugh thank you goes out to all those who donated a backpack for the project. We are collecting stories from those who donated a backpack. Whether you donated a backpack as an individual, as a family, or as an organization (classroom, school, student group, company), we would like to hear your story. Contact us by posting your story to this blog or emailing it to wawesty@gmail.com

Miss Solak's class at Sunnyside Elementary in Pullman collected supplies and filled somewhere around 50 backpacks! In the backpacks, the students placed letters they composed, as well as a stamped envelope with the Sunnyside mailing address in hopes of getting responses back from students receiving backpacks. We will keep you posted on their progress.

Mrs. Kennedy’s 2nd grade class and Mrs. Alm’s 5th grade class at Gess Elementary in Chewelah, Washington collected school supplies and filled over 75 backpacks. This photos shows the backpacks from Gess Elementary delivered at the WSU-Stanford football game.

Backpacks for Hope Collection

We are ramping up for the collection of Backpacks at the WSU-Stanford football game this weekend! If you have backpacks and want to deliver them before Saturday, you can drop them off at the College of Education Dean’s Office Thursday and Friday anytime between 8-5 or at the bench in the CUB on Friday from 10-1. As you can see from the photo below, the College of Education Deans office is stacked with backpacks from floor to ceiling. Also, the second photo includes some of the fantastic staff at the Community Service Learning Center, who have been collecting backpacks at the CUB on Fridays. Thanks

And you thought your office was packed with stuff! :-)

CSLC Staff that have helped in the colletion of backpacks on Fridays includes (from left to right) Laura Lahne, Valerie Barabe, Denise Watson, Bonnie Ankrom, Sarah McCracken, Sarah Stanton, Lindsey Pritchard-Peterson

Collection sites for WSU-Stanford Game

October 8th is fast approaching and we are set to collect Backpacks at the WSU-Stanford Football game. There are several locations available for you to drop off your backpack. We understand that on game days in Pullman, traffic can make it difficult to get around campus. Thus, the collections sites have been located in an effort to make it both convenient and easy to deliver your backpacks.

The locations are as follows:

• The WSU Visitor’s Center in the Cougar Depot, downtown Pullman.
• The Lewis Alumni Center located east of the stadium.
• In the CUB Parking lot located on the southwest side of the stadium (between the CUB and the stadium).
• In the center of Mooberry Track located just north of the stadium (hopefully at the tent in the center of the track).

If you are planning on attending the football game, use your normal parking locations and follow the signs to the closest drop off zone or look for one of the volunteers wearing a Backpacks for Hope t-shirt. They will be able to assist you.

We hope that these locations provide you with an easy way to donate the backpacks you have purchased and filled with school supplies.

We want to thank you for your generosity and support of the Backpacks for Hope project!

Backpack Collection in Pullman

Backpacks for Hope will be collected on the WSU campus Monday - Friday in the College of Education Dean's Office. The dean's office is located in Cleveland Hall Room 160 and is open from 8:00 - 5:00. Hopefully, this will provide you with expanded times and days to drop off your backpacks.

We will continue collecting backpacks on the WSU campus through Saturday October 8th. At which time, we will be collecting backpacks before the WSU-Stanford football game, packing them in boxes by grade level, and loading them onto the FedEx trucks. FedEx has again donated the trucks and the time and resources to deliver the backpacks to designated distribution centers, where the backpacks will be given to students who have been displaced by Katrina.

The details and logistics for the collection of backpacks at the WSU-Stanford game are being developed and will be posted here as soon as they are available.

More BackPack Photos

Here are the last of the photos from the WSU-Grambling Collection. We will also post photos of the backpack collection at the WSU-Stanford game scheduled for October 8th.

Christian Mettam and Nick Renner hand-in their backpacks.

Kelley Westhoff and Katie Granger organize and sort the backpacks.

Nancy Wright, Megan Wright, Dan Atchison, and Dan Wright provided their assistance with the collection of backpacks.

Below are additional photos from the WSU-Grambling Collection of backpacks, but unfortunately the identities of some are unknown, my apologies. If you recognize someone, let me know and I will add their names.

We would like to thank everyone for the backpacks that they brought and donated in Seattle at the WSU-Grambling game. Now, we are preparing to collect backpacks at the WSU - Stanford game on October 8th.

More Photos from Backpacks for Hope

We would like to thank FedEx for the use of their trucks at Qwest Field and for shipping all of the backpacks!

Ashley, Jamie, Ed and Amy Bliss with Gail Gleason (second from right). The Bliss family are Saints fans from Louisiana now living in Seattle and volunteered because they wanted a way to help and support their favorite Saints player, Steve Gleason.

Emily and Elania Thomsen donate their backpacks at the WSU game!

Gail Gleason collects backpacks from Conor, Neill, Niamh & Fionnuala Smith.

Part of the crew collecting backpacks inside the Events Center before the game and the guys loading the truck.