Ready for the New School Year

Back-to-School Giveaway at Summer Scholar Camp

We wrapped up the Summer Scholars Camp with Jacarrie Kicks for Kids' annual Back-to-School Shoe and Book Bag Giveaway. The purpose of this event is to ensure kids have book bags with supplies, free haircuts, hairdos, and a fresh pair of shoes to start the school year. This way, when they go to school, nobody can bully or tease them for what they don't have. Instead, they can focus on their education because everyone is fresh and equipped with everything they need for the school year.

We started off with free haircuts. Kids were able to get their hair done, whether it was getting their dreads retwisted, braids styled, linings, tapers, designs, high tops, or afros. Our barbers were willing to provide whatever hairstyle the kids wanted, and our beauticians were equally dedicated.

The kids also received new and gently used shoes. We had brand-new shoes, customized shoes, and gently used shoes, all of which were super clean. This ensured that when the kids went to school, nobody could comment on their appearance because they were "fresh to death." We also provided book bags filled with supplies. The reason for this is simple: we know some parents have more than one child, and school supplies can be expensive. By providing fully stocked book bags, we ensured the kids were ready to learn with everything they needed.

The book bags contained notebooks, folders, pencils, pens, erasers, loose-leaf paper, scissors, and rulers. For the community event, we received generous donations from supporters like St. Marcus, the Black Man Alliance, Bader Philanthropies, Bradley Philanthropies, Brady, Jordan P., the Washington Wizards, the NBPA, and one of our most important donors—Facebook, along with individuals from the platform. We want to extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who contributed to making this event a success for our kiddos. We were able to give away over 500 pairs of shoes and 400 book bags filled with supplies.

I have a deep love for this giveaway, which I started about 12 years ago. It truly helps parents who can't afford to prepare all their children for school, and it also boosts the confidence of the kids, making them feel good about themselves. A little bit of my personal testimony: as a kid, I was bullied and teased for my appearance. I attended a uniform school, and because we were living in poverty, I didn’t have many uniform options. If I stained my uniform with crayon, pencil, or spaghetti, there was a good chance I’d have to wear it back to school the next day, which often made for a tough day.

At Jacarrie Kicks for Kids, our motto is, "When you look good, you do good." We wanted to ensure every kid went off to school looking good so they could do good and not worry about the struggles they face at home or in their community. We want all of our kids to go to school, flourish, be great, and have a good time learning while feeling happy and proud of themselves and who they are.