School donation room supports community

Mill Creek Elementary School recently opened a donation room for students who are in need of school supplies, food and clothing. During the holiday months, Mill Creek Elementary School assisted families with holiday food and gifts. “When we returned in January, I thought ‘Why stop there?’” said Joy Stickney-McDonald MSS, LSW, school social worker. “I wanted to expand our efforts to a year-round service for our community.” This is when her vision of creating a school supply, food and clothing resource room was born.

“Now more than ever, our students and families can benefit from a caring hand,” said Stickney-McDonald. “We are continuing a 10-month pandemic; families have been out of work and have had to adjust their schedules due to the hybrid model. We need to come together and support each other, first by meeting each student’s basic needs.” One of those basic needs is school supplies and students cannot share them under the district’s Health and Safety Plan for COVID-19. Nothing can be left in desks when students leave at the end of the day, so students often forget their supplies at home. The room is stocked with pencils, notebooks, crayons, erasers and other school supplies. Additionally, there are antibacterial hand wipes, hand sanitizers, clothing, and nonperishable food items such as pasta, canned vegetables and fruit, canned soup and more.

Within one week of contacting Kamp For Kids, a nonprofit organization dedicated to seeking out and fulfilling community needs, two car loads of supplies arrived at Mill Creek Elementary School. More community organizations are getting involved to stock the donation room as well. The Family Service Association of Bucks County donated soaps, combs, peanut butter, cereal, applesauce, pencils, construction paper and snack packs. The United Way of Bucks County’s “HELP Center” provided additional school supplies including pencils, posters, dry-erase markers and index cards.