The school year just ended, but Operation Homefront is already getting ready for next fall. The national non-profit for military families recently launched its sixth annual Back-to-School Brigade to help collect school supplies and monetary donations for military children.
Having one or both parents in the military can be stressful enough, so gathering all the appropriate supplies in time for the first day of school may be difficult for these students. Operation Homefront hopes their backpacks, stuffed with all the items they need for a successful school year, will help ease the stress.
"Military families, especially those in the lower and mid-grade enlisted ranks, can see a real money crunch at back-to-school time," said Jim Knotts, president and CEO of Operation Homefront. "People in the community who want to say thank you to military families can make a real contribution by being part of the Back-to-School Brigade program."
The program has been a big success over the years. In 2011, for instance, the organization raised more than $2 million in donations and school supplies for military families. That was enough to fill more than 30,000 backpacks full of supplies.