Thanks to Guru Nanak Food Bank’s second annual School Supply Drive, students in Delta are heading back to school with the tools they need to succeed in their studies.
North Delta-based Guru Nanak Food Bank, a leading community-based organization, organized a School Supply Drive on Aug. 26 and 27 to support students in Delta and Surrey respectively. They encouraged community members to consider purchasing some extra school supplies while doing their back-to-school shopping. More than 2,000 items were donated by generous community members.
On Wednesday, Sept. 6, the school supply items, which included pencils, crayons, highlighters, erasers, scissors, notebooks, calculators and binders, were presented to Delta school board chair Val Windsor and trustee Nimmi Daula.
In the coming days and weeks, the supplies will be distributed to students across the district.
In addition, Guru Nanak Food Bank collected $2,403.55, including donations from young community members eager to hand over their pocket money. Guru Nanak Food Bank will use this money to purchase other items for students, such as shoes, coats and backpacks, as needed.
“Given the current economic climate, we know how important it is to alleviate the financial burden on families and students,” said Gyani Narinder Singh, founder and president of the Guru Nanak Food Bank. “We were inspired to start this initiative last year for students in Surrey as we knew some families were finding it difficult to afford food, let alone school supplies.
“We were thrilled to be able to expand this initiative to help students in Delta this year. We look forward to growing this event and its impact even more next year, as we know that every notebook, pencil, and backpack carries the promise of a brighter future.”
Neeraj Walia, director and secretary for the food bank said during the last two months, 69 students volunteered full-time to make this initiative a success.
“In total, they gave more than 11,559 hours, with some even cancelling their vacation plans and trips to the PNE to volunteer,” said Walia. “A huge thank-you to our volunteers for being so generous with their time and efforts.”
Windsor said the school district is so thankful to the food bank for initiating the School Supply Drive.
“It’s heartwarming to see how many supplies were donated,” said Windsor. “Removing barriers to education in simple ways such as ensuring all kids have the resources they need to learn is essential if we want them to thrive and feel like they belong at school. I know the School Supply Drive will make a positive difference to the lives of the many students and parents on the receiving end of these supplies.”
