The Trenton Times published the following article on July 22, 2014. To read the full article, click here.
Back-to-school backpack project aiming to help kids in Trenton foster care system
By Amy Reynolds | Times of Trenton
on July 22, 2014 at 7:20 AM, updated July 22, 2014 at 7:23 AMBack-to-school shopping is a luxury that many foster parents cannot afford for the children they are giving homes to. But with the help of Prudential and local sponsors, the New Jersey Department of Children and Families is collecting backpacks and school supplies for children in the Trenton foster care system.
“We noticed that the clients that we serviced, they lacked the two things needed to start school — clothes and materials they would need to use to get an education,” said
Patricia Richardson, Mercer County resource development specialist for the Division of Child Protection and Permanency.Prudential, which is spearheading the backpack-collection project, and the NJ Department of Children and Families are collecting filled backpacks for infants and toddlers, 5- to 8-year-olds, 9- to 12-year-olds, 13- to 17-year-olds, and kids aging out of the foster care system.
In addition to filling the backpacks with school supplies, participants are asked to fill the backpacks with hygiene items, such as shampoo, toothpaste, sleepwear and beauty products.