With only a couple of weeks left before he begins his sophomore year, West Aurora High School student Joe Carroll was up bright and early to unload pallets and sort backpacks and other school supplies as part of the preparations for the annual Communities In Schools and Project Unity’s Annual Back to School Fair.
The event will be held Saturday at the John R. Harkness Center at 60 S. Fourth St. in Aurora.
Carroll was among about 300 volunteers that either sorted supplies before the event or will be on hand the day of the event to help funnel the expected 4,000 students and their families through a serpentine line of tables that will be stacked with school supplies as well as information from more than 30 community organizations.
Sorting notebooks into stacks of five for high school students, Oswego’s Lora Ramseier came to volunteer at the event along with about 10 of her Blue Cross Blue Shield coworkers.
She said the event was a great opportunity to work together in a different kind of way to give back to the community.
In addition to school supplies at the event, children will also be able to receive immunizations, a physical, and a dental exam prior to school beginning in the fall.
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Children entering preschool, kindergarten, sixth, and ninth grades must have immunizations and a physical before school starts and students entering kindergarten, second, and sixth grades are required to have a dental exam.
Last year, Paul Klinger with Communities in Schools Aurora said about a dozen children were referred for emergency dental work following their exams.
In its 21st year, he expects families to begin lining up for the event about 4 a.m. The event officially opens at 9 a.m. and also includes activities for the kids, free hot dogs cooked up by the Aurora Police Department, and clothes distributed by a local church, he added.
In addition, Marchel Rogers and his family also are expected on Saturday to lend a hand. When Marchel was only 15 years old, his brother Moshe Rogers was shot and killed driving home from a high school basketball game in February 1995 after being mistaken for a gang member.
Following Rogers’ death and the death of Armando Mendez, a group of concerned citizens banded together to address the violence that was occurring in Aurora.
One of the outgrowths was Project Unity which began the back to school fair in 1995.
A neighbor of the Rogers’ family, Mary Gerhard, said, “It was a real grass-roots effort.”
“At that time, a lot of kids were not starting school on the first day because they didn’t have their shots, so they would come a month into the school year,” she added. “This back to school fair is a hands-up. We want to connect them with resources.”
About 10 years ago, Project Unity reached out to Communities in Schools Aurora to partner with it and to continue the tradition, Theresa Shoemaker, Executive Director of Communities in Schools Aurora, said.
“It is expensive to go back to school,” she added.
All the school supplies are purchased new by Communities in Schools Aurora, which raises money through a 5K race and a spaghetti dinner to pay for the supplies.
Participants need to provide proof of income and residency information and must be in the boundaries of Aurora schools.
Communities in Schools Aurora is part of the Communities in Schools national organization that provides counseling, mentoring, after school programs, and summer camps, Shoemaker said. As one of only two in Illinois — the other is in Chicago – its goal is to bring community resources to the public schools in Aurora.
Back to School Fair
When: 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday
Where: John R. Harkness Center, 60 S. Fourth St., Aurora
What: Attendees will have access to school supply kits, backpacks, food pantry vouchers as well as clothing, immunizations, physicals and dental screenings at no charge.
Who: To be eligible, participants must provide a picture ID, proof of Aurora address and a current paycheck or public aid card. To receive health care services, families must provide immunization records.