When it comes to things we are passionate about in the City of Nevada, IA, one of those things is helping the local schools and local students. One of the ways our people contribute is by supporting the Blast Back-to-School program, which annually provides school supplies for students whose families are going through financial and/or situational hardship.
“Nevada is fabulous as a community with every part of helping with this program,” said Jodi Heeren, who has been a Student and Family Development Specialist with the Nevada Schools for 27 years. She said not only do Nevadans give financially to the school supplies program; some also help with the preparation/packing event in Ames prior to the time when supplies are put in the hands of children by school personnel.
Typically, Heeren and others wait until summer to push for donations to the Blast Back-to-School, but this year, Heeren wanted to get ahead of the usual time frame.
“It takes quite a bit of money to get all the backpacks purchased,” she said. And while all types of school supply donations are accepted by the program, financial contributions are the most helpful to the committee in being able to buy what is needed.
Ames community member Jenn Peterson, who serves on the Blast Back-to-School committee, handles most of the backpack shopping and purchasing.
“She does a great job at finding a lovely selection of backpacks to fit every personality and age,” Heeren said, noting that the program puts backpacks and supplies in the hands of the youngest students all the way to high school seniors. “Jenn is incredible at utilizing every possible coupon, discount, and sale to get us the most for our money.”
To help the greater community understand the full importance of a perfect backpack, Heeren shares the story of a child who came to the community in foster care. She went to meet the student prior to them starting at the school and took several backpack choices along. “This child was so quiet, and so apprehensive. But when I presented the backpacks, the child picked out the most sparkly, fuzzy backpack, and then they literally hugged it. It was something of theirs and it was new and wonderful, and when that child came to school, I could see the joy in their eyes and their attachment still to that backpack. Those who donate don’t always get to see the joy and outcomes, but I do, and I can assure all of you, it’s amazing to see.”
Heeren said the number of children in the Nevada School District needing school supplies assistance ebbs and flows, but can be anywhere from 200 to 400 students. With the price of school supplies rising, families spend at least $100 per year, per child, Heeren estimated. That means the ability of the schools to collect donations and take care of this expense for families is huge. “Especially when it comes to some of the more costly items like a special science or math calculator,” she said.
Heeren also wants community members to know that any unused backpacks and supplies are divided among the participating schools and often come in handy when students in need arrive in the middle of the school year. Heeren said she had an extra shelf full of loaded backpacks at the start of this school year at the middle school, and by March, they had all been given out to new students.
By the end of the school year, any unused supplies are pushed into the coming school year. The only thing sometimes needing to be thrown out and replaced is glue sticks which may have dried out, she said.
Heeren said that bringing together personnel from all the county school districts in recent years has been a wonderful way to carry out the back-to-school supplies mission. “I feel like it’s a huge support group, because we are all like-minded. It’s nice to talk to folks in the other districts who do what I do.” And what exactly does Heeren do? She basically connects families to resources.
“It’s always been a passion for me to make sure that everyone has equal access to things, like being involved in extra-curricular activities. If a student wants to be in a certain activity, but can’t afford the ‘white tennis shoes,’ I can provide those shoes.” And she does so through the generous donations of others, including the wonderful grant funds she’s received from the Memorial Lutheran Endowment Fund and through The Nevada Foundation.
The full committee for Blast Back-to-School highlights the following ways anyone can partner with them over the coming months before August 1:
- Hold a collection drive at your business/organization for a particular school supply or type of supplies by signing up here: https://forms.gle/zpjXjKUwLxsgkYqf6. You can also visit our website blastbacktoschool.org to see our full list of needed supplies and access the supply Sign-Up Genius list at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C4EABA823ABF8C61-blast#/. One of our committee members can pick up collected supplies if needed.
- Make a tax-deductible donation by writing a check to our fiscal agent: United Way of Story County, 315 Clark Ave, Ames, IA 50010 with Blast Back to School in the memo line. Online donations are also accepted at: https://www.uwstory.org/civicrm/contribute/transact?reset=1&id=1. Be sure to indicate your donation is for Blast Back to School after selecting ‘Other’ in the Special Initiative drop down.
- Volunteer to help pack backpacks and/or help at school distribution sites. Our volunteer sign up can be found here beginning in May: https://www.blastbacktoschool.org/volunteer
- Donate school supplies at one of the collection sites listed on our website: blastbacktoschool.org.
If you have a question about Blast Back-to-School, reach out to Jodi Heeren at: jheeren@nevadacubs.org or call the middle school (where her office is located): 515-382-2751.
–Written by Marlys Barker, City of Nevada
