Students head back to school ready for success with community support

Sisters Jacklyn, Crystall and Rachelle started school with everything they need to succeed in the classroom thanks to generous support from our community.

Thanks to generous support from businesses, community organizations and individual donors and volunteers, the children we serve across our region headed back to school last month with all of the supplies and confidence they need to be successful in the classroom.Milestone Realty, in Lexington, KY, helped ensure the children we serve in Central Kentucky had backpacks, school supplies, uniforms and new shoes by contributing donated items and gift cards worth nearly $5,000! We are so grateful for the generous support of Milestone Realty's employees.

Additionally, thanks to Messer Construction, we celebrated the beginning of the school year in at Louisville Family Housing Services. Volunteers from Messer Construction hosted the sixth annual Back-to-School Bash for the families living with us while they work towards self-sufficiency. The party was complete with food, games, face-painting and more. Messer's staff donated 72 backpacks and an assortment of school supplies to the children we serve.

We also want to thank our other Back to School donors, including Erika Boyd and her REFIT® class, who became connected to Volunteers of America through board member Taylor Amerman, for donating a car load of school supplies, as well as Sheila Laemmle and her family and friends who collected 54 backpacks full of supplies. Finally, we are grateful for the support of businesses like Duplicator Sales, POS Portal, SMC3 and the many individuals who donated supplies to support the children we serve.