On September 13, a big yellow school bus pulled into Lock 3 in downtown Akron during the Global Village Festival of Greater Akron. United Way’s second annual Stuff the Bus community engagement event finished up with a flurry of people and school supplies loaded aboard. This finale event followed more than a month of collecting items students and teachers in Summit County public schools will need for a successful school year.
Member of United Way’s Young Leader’s Society filled backpacks with items and readied them for delivery through a week-long sort-a-thon. The backpacks were distributed to 17 traditional public schools plus United Disability Services’ Steel Academy, a public community school for students with learning differences who have had difficulty finding success in other school environments.
With the help of local individuals, businesses and other organizations, United Way’s 2015 Stuff the Bus was a great success! A total of 21 companies participated, up from 16 in 2014. More than 6,400 items were donated—more than double the amount collected last year. And, approximately 3,000 Summit County students were provided backpacks and school supplies through the program—a 34% increase over last year.
The success of this year’s Stuff the Bus was made possible by the support of hundreds of volunteers who stepped up to make a difference in the lives of local children.
Special thanks to these organizations that acted as collection points and provided supplies and volunteers:
A.Schulman, Inc.
Akron Beacon Journal
Akron/Summit Convention & Visitors Bureau
Akron-Summit County Public Libraries
American Red Cross of Summit & Portage Counties
Bober Markey Fedorovich
Cohen & Company
CSL Plasma Services
Dominion East Ohio
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
Hereford Highland Square Block Watch
Malco Products, Inc.
Matco Tools
Premier Bank
Sequoia Financial Group
Snap-on Business Solutions
Summit County Fiscal Office
UPS
Viox Services
Wells Fargo, LLC
Westfield Insurance
Thanks also to Akron Public Schools for providing the school bus on Sept. 13 and to Family Promise of Summit County for providing sorting and storage space!
