Monetary Donations enable The Storehouse to not only buy in bulk but also provide a gift card for school uniforms 

School may be letting out for the summer, but The Storehouse of Collin County is already working to meet the back-to-school needs of children in Collin County. The nonprofit is asking the community for monetary donations for its annual Backpack Distribution beginning on June 18 with a donation deadline of July 18. Backpacks filled with supplies along with a gift card for school uniforms will be distributed to more than 500 registered pantry clients in early August. 

This year, The Storehouse is encouraging monetary donations instead of individual supplies in order to maximize the number of items it can acquire by purchasing in bulk from corporate partners and retailers. A donation of $50 will cover a child’s backpack ($15), a basic set of school supplies ($20), and a gift card ($15) for school uniforms.  

“The Storehouse has developed some fantastic relationships in the community and can successfully stretch dollars by working closely with our corporate partners and buying exactly what is needed in bulk,” said Candace Winslow, the new Executive Director of The Storehouse of Collin County.  “We are excited to be working with St. Andrew’s youth department this year to have the high school students write notes of encouragement – wishing the kids ‘good luck’ for the new school year – to be inserted into each backpack.”

Checks may be made out to The Storehouse of Collin County and mailed to The Storehouse, 5801 West Plano Parkway, Plano, Texas  75093 with “Back to School” in the memo line, or donations may be made online on our website, www.thestorehousecc.org/schoolsupplies

“For those struggling to put food on the table, school supplies are far outside family budgets,” added Winslow.  “By contributing, you are helping us to lift this expensive burden for so many families. Last year, one family shared that not only is this is one less thing they had to worry about when preparing for the school year, but it also showed her children the importance of being prepared and having what they needed when they started school.”

For any questions, visit www.thestorehousecc.org or call (469) 385-1815. 

 “This is a generous community, and we want to thank everyone in advance for their contributions,” added Winslow. “We could not do all that we do without the help of so many caring people.”

The Storehouse of Collin County, a nonprofit organization housed within St. Andrew United Methodist Church, is the umbrella of services providing short-term assistance and long-term transformation to residents of Collin County in need: the Seven Loaves Food Pantry, serving 1,000 families a month; Joseph’s Coat Clothing Closet, providing an average of 4,000 garments each month; and Project Hope, a mentoring program supporting women in crisis. The program first began in 2009 under the name of Seven Loaves which provided only food pantry staples and grew over the years to meet a variety of needs. An estimated 130,000 people in Collin County live below the poverty level, more than half of which are children. Visit www.thestorehousecc.org.