COPPERAS COVE — Members of the community helped stuff the bus in Copperas Cove on Friday afternoon, the beginning of the three-day school supply drive.
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Initially, the event was planned to be held all weekend at the Copperas Cove Walmart.
The Copperas Cove Chamber & Visitors Bureau will be at the Main Street building Friday to take donations.
Despite the cancellation, Walmart is donating $1,000 to the district to purchase supplies, district spokeswoman Wendy Sledd said via email Monday.
After the event Friday, the supplies will be distributed to the campuses.
Those who cannot donate physical supplies but would like to donate money can do so at https://bit.ly/STBCC21.
Nearly 70% of Copperas Cove ISD students qualify for the free and reduced meal program. Many of these studentsâ families may find it challenging to afford school supplies on a regular school year. The pandemic makes purchasing supplies even more difficult. Copperas Cove Walmart partnered with the school district to ensure no child lacks school supplies when class is back in session on Aug. 18.
The seventh annual Stuff the Bus event Aug. 6-8 is taking advantage of the boost of sales expected during tax-free weekend when no tax is charged on school-related items.
Walmart Manager Mandy Simmerman says the Copperas Cove Walmart has been a part of the Stuff the Bus event from the beginning, and itâs something the associates look forward to each year.
Despite the rainy, dreary conditions, Copperas Cove Five Hills Junior Ambassador Hayley Sawyer smiled, greeted shoppers and asked them to provide a blanket for homeless veterans for the holiday season.
In partnership with the Copperas Cove Walmart and the Miss Five Hills Scholarship Program, the 10-year-old Sawyer spent nearly eight hours handing out flyers and collecting blankets from shoppers.
âIt is freezing cold in the winter and the homeless veterans do not have the money to buy a blanket or jacket,â Sawyer said. âI want to help keep them all warmer this winter and I think it is crucial to donate blankets to the homeless, especially this year to help keep them safe during the pandemic.