Y-12 collects school supplies for ADFAC

Kids around the country are heading back to school, and with help from employees at the Y-12 National Security Complex, many in East Tennessee will head back with all the supplies they’ll need for a successful school year, a press release said.

The release said Y-12 recently collected thousands of individual items for Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties’ annual school supply drive as part of the United Way Days of Caring drive. That total included more than 230 boxes of crayons and markers, 320 notebooks, 300 glue sticks, and 220 packs of pens and pencils. Employees also donated more than $2,500.

After being counted and sorted on-site, the supplies were delivered to ADFAC, where they were made available to qualifying area students. The program has served more than 20,000 disadvantaged students since it began in 1989, including more than 1,900 K–12 students this year alone.

Each school that works with the program handles the process differently, but they all emphasize the opportunity for students to select a backpack that comes filled with the specific supplies they’ll need that year. The idea is simple: Students will be more successful in the classroom if they are prepared and ready to learn.

“Thank you so much for the donation,” said Annie Cacheiro, ADFAC executive director. “It really does help us help so many students. If a student comes to school on the first day without the same materials as the other kids sitting next to them, they are likely to shut down and not even try. But, with a great backpack filled with the necessary supplies, they are ready and feel as though they are a part of their own education.”