The school year is just around the corner, and United Community Corporation has partnered with local organizations to ensure students are best prepared to return to the classrooms after summer.
The Backpacks and Snacks Event will be held on Thursday, August 25, at The Clubhouse (205 Spruce Street, Newark, NJ 07108) from 1 p.m. - 5 p.m.
The event is sponsored by Amerigroup, Chase Bank, and Peapack-Gladstone Bank.
"As the Community Action Agency for the City of Newark, we want to provide resources and assistance that best help the community at a given time," UCC Executive Director Craig Mainor said.
"When it gets to the end of August, that means helping the youth of our community be in the best possible situation to succeed during the school year. We know the importance of excelling in the classroom and are happy to provide students with the means to do just that."
Jersey Cares donated 80 pre-packed backpacks for the event from its 2022 School Supply Drive.
United Community Corporation will be providing 60 backpacks to bring the total to 140 backpacks provided to youth in the community.
Peacock-Gladstone Bank will be donating 200 notebooks in support of the event.
"We're so thankful for all of the generous donations that we received," UCC Director of Community Engagement Richard Greco said.
"Jersey Cares went above and beyond to support our cause and we can't thank our sponsors enough for supporting us in a variety of capacities. It is great to see so many organizations come together to support our community."
In addition to supplies, United Community Corporation has partnered with Saint James Health to provide COVID-19 vaccinations.
The event is also being run in partnership with CityLife Health, the Shani Baraka Women's Resource Center, Newark Centers of Hope, the Newark Housing Authority, Ironbound Community Corporation, and The Learning Experience (TLE) Newark.
United Community Corporation's Housing Assistance and Energy Assistance departments will be on-hand to schedule appointments and provide help for those facing eviction, looking for housing, or are behind on utility bills.
"The future of our community rests with the youth," UCC Assistant Director of Community Engagement Alena Minatee said.
"It is vital for organizations to come together to provide the resources to empower youth to succeed. UCC provides resources holistically so that parents and guardians can have what they need to move their families forward."
The event, which is open to the entire community, will benefit students from UCC's YouthBuild Job Training Program, which offers an alternative educational and trade pre-apprentice training route for young adults aged 16-24.
It will also benefit UCC's Back Together Again Summer Enrichment program, which is a free summer program at five Newark elementary schools operated in partnership with The City of Newark and Newark Board of Education for youth ages 7 - 14.
YouthBuild is currently accepting interest forms online at https://uccnewark.org/youth-build. Inquiries can be made by calling 973-642-0181 EXT 5705 or sent to youthbuild@uccnewark.org.
To inquire about UCC's Youth and Teen services, contact Director of Youth and Senior Programs Yolanda Loney via email at yolanda.loney@uccnewark.org or by calling 973-642-0181, Ext 4001.
To sign up for the final two weeks of free summer camp, register here: https://forms.gle/msJtD7MLvxnBqcoS9.
"It is essential to provide backpacks to the students in our community because we aim to influence the power of having an education," Director of Youth & Senior Services Yolanda Loney said.
"Providing students with necessary supplies sparks an interest in using these tools to track their academic progress, enforcing self-management and self-discipline."