This back-to-school season, we at Quill were honored to have the opportunity to give back to a school in our local community. Through partnership with many of our vendors, we helped a school on the southside of Chicago start the year off with an abundance of supplies at no cost to them or the families they serve.
Quill partnered with 20+ vendors to give away 37 gift bags packed with school supplies to all 25 teachers and teaching assistants, 10 support staff members, and the principal and vice principal at Niños Heroes Elementary Academic Center in Chicago, IL. We also gave the school 3 coffee makers for various areas of the school and raffled off bigger items such as whiteboards, laminators, headphones, and desk chairs.
How the plan for the Quill school supplies giveaway event unfolded
When a vendor contact asked Mellonee Calhoun, Project Specialist at Quill, if we were going to put on the “educators giveaway” again, she was excited to help. She was referencing an event Quill had sponsored in the past to donate a large quantity of school supplies to a local school. To do it again, we just needed to make a few connections.
First, Mellonee reached out to more vendors to provide a wide breadth of supplies for the school. Vendors such as Newell, 3M, and Johnson & Johnson were more than happy to help.
Next, we needed to choose the school. Mellonee reached out to members of her sorority, Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Inc. to see if any of them knew of a school that would really appreciate the help.
Mellonee felt personally motivated to help make this event happen.
“It meant everything to me to be a part of this event and had me think about why I joined my organization, Sigma Gamma Rho – to give back to the community,” Mellonee told us.
A sorority member got her connected with Niños Heroes Elementary. From there, the event date was set for the Friday before the first day of the school year and Quill got to work on preparing everything.
How the Quill school supplies giveaway made a difference for students and educators
Niños Heroes Elementary Academic Center’s mission is to create a peaceful and safe space with the least amount of interruptions to learning, envisioning and striving for a positive learning environment that creates life-long, self-motivated learners. School principal, Kimberly Denton-Hatcher, expressed her deep appreciation for Quill’s donation, and put into perspective exactly how much it meant to everyone at the school.
“There is a high need in our area for supplies and academic encouragement for students – to come to school and know that you have supplies and you’re not being judged,” Kimberly stated. “Our families here, 92% are below the poverty line. And CPS budgets were cut. Anything that comes to our schools, we really appreciate it and our students really need it. Teachers cannot afford everything.”
4th/5th grade teacher Gwendolyn Hardwick spoke to how this giveaway helped the teachers directly.
“Last year I spent $3000 out of my own pocket. Because I know what I can do is going to help out,” Gwendolyn told us.
She was so grateful for Quill’s donation.
“The community is helping the community. That is exactly what we need,” Gwendolyn said.
Read more stories like this and keep up with business resources on the Quill Blog.