By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
James Hyatt vividly remembers the first day of school.
All of the students were given brown paper book covers for their textbooks, which looked nice for the first few days of school, Mr. Hyatt said with a laugh.
While children do not use brown paper book covers anymore, the thrill of having something new for the first day of school — notebooks, clothing and school supplies — is universal.
That’s why Mr. Hyatt and his granddaughters go shopping for school supplies and clothing before school starts — not for themselves, but for HomeFront’s youngest clients. The nonprofit group helps the homeless and the working poor.
"I have followed the good works of HomeFront for a number of years, and it seemed to me that the ‘back-to-school’ backpack drive was a pretty appealing thing. Everybody deserves to have a nice, fresh start and this is a pretty easy way to do it," Mr. Hyatt said.
"I always like to think, if you are going back to school, you want to wear something new. It’s nice to have a new outfit to go back to school. It helps the children to feel good to have a new lunchbox, a new notebook and Crayolas that are not worn down to the end. It makes me feel good, too," he said.
Mr. Hyatt said his granddaughters act as advisers when he has to decide which blouse or shirt of pair of shoes to buy. The experience of buying for HomeFront clients "gives (my granddaughters) a sense that some people could use some help," he said.
But it’s not just people like Mr. Hyatt and his granddaughters who take part in the back-to-school drive. Many corporations participate, too. NRG Energy Inc. is one of those companies that encourages its employees to help out.
NRG Energy, which has been a supporter of HomeFront for the past six years, sends out an email to all employees letting them know that lists of children and their back-to-school needs are available. Some employees ask to shop for a family, while others prefer to shop for a specific age or gender.
"The enthusiasm of our employees is contagious," said Tanuja Dehne, NRG Energy’s chief of staff and a member of HomeFront’s board of trustees. "It typically starts with one saying something like, ‘My wife and I would like one child to shop for.’ They might come back the next day with ‘May we have another to shop for.’¦"
The employees usually purchase more than the minimum, Ms. Dehne said. They buy enough clothing for several days, and maybe a jacket or a more durable backpack that will last longer. This year, the company shopped for 24 children, which included donations from nearly 200 employees.
"It just feels good to help a child get prepared for a new school year," Ms. Dehne said.
And although the first day of school is still several weeks away, there is time for some last-minute shopping for HomeFront’s clients. The deadline to buy clothing and school supplies for the back-to-school campaign is Aug. 20.
HomeFront’s goal is to fill more than 1,000 backpacks with school supplies and new outfits this month, as it has done for more than 20 years. While many donors have signed up to fill a backpack for a young child, there is a "real need" for people to help fill the backpacks of teenagers, said Connie Mercer, executive director of HomeFront.
"We need donors for teenagers. It’s hardest on teenagers to be homeless. It is most important for teenagers to look like their classmates," Ms. Mercer said, making the call for more people to "adopt" a teenager’s list of back-to-school needs.
It’s easy to sign up to sponsor a child. The donor is provided with the name, age, grade and clothing size for a child. The shopping list includes a new shirt and pants, plus new underwear, socks and shoes or sneakers.
A donor may choose to fill a backpack with new school supplies. The list includes a backpack, notebooks, a three-ring binder with paper, folders, pens and pencils, erasers, rulers, a lunch box or bag, and packs of tissues.
Younger children, from ages 5-12, need glue sticks, tape, colored pencils, crayons, markers and scissors, while older children need a scientific calculator, a protractor and a combination lock for the school locker.
A cash donation to HomeFront’s back-to-school drive is another way to make school a positive experience for a child, said Sheila Addison, the director of HomeFront’s Family Preservation Center for homeless women and children.
There are many small expenses that occur throughout the school year and that are out of reach for most HomeFront mothers, such as fees for school trips, class pictures, extra activities and equipment, Ms. Addison said.
The special fund helps keep the children from having to step away from those events, which would result in an even bigger stigma for them, Ms. Addison said. All children need to feel good about themselves and comfortable at school so they can concentrate and learn, she added.
"We should never forget how important the first day of school is for any child," Ms. Addison said. "That first day of school sets the tone for the rest of the year. It’s very hard to make friends or look teachers in the eye when you know you don’t look like the other kids."
For more information, call 609-989-9417, ext. 133 or email homefront@homefrontnj.org.
