QUEENS — School costs can be daunting for many parents, but for homeless families it’s a real challenge.
Now, Queens residents can help by donating backpacks and school supplies to homeless children as part of “Project: Back to School,” an annual initiative organized by the Coalition for the Homeless.
“School kids living in homeless shelters must contend with unimaginable levels of stress and hardship, and are at a tremendous disadvantage when trying to keep up with their housed peers in class,” said Dave Giffen, executive director of the Coalition for the Homeless, in a statement.
A temporary drop-off site, which is located at Queens Borough Hall, will remain open until Sept. 18.
“About 87,000 New York City school kids live in homeless shelters or temporary housing, and not a single school district is spared from this epidemic,” Borough President Melinda Katz said.
Supplies that are much needed by schoolchildren include No. 2 pencils, composition books, pocket folders, calculators, one-inch binders and colored pencils, according to the Coalition for the Homeless.
Residents can leave backpacks and school supply donations at a drop-off box placed in the lobby of Queens Borough Hall at 120-55 Queens Blvd. Monday through Friday during business hours.
