Tools for School vital for local families

Local families with children getting ready for school need assistance through the annual "Tools for School" school supplies drive hosted by Sisters' Les Schwab Taylor Tire Center.

Community members can drop off school supplies during regular business hours and help students in need begin the school year well-equipped for a successful year. The drive is off to a slow start.

Sisters FAN distributes school supplies to over 100 students in need each year. For many local children the Tools for School drive provides their only means of obtaining their necessary school supplies.

"We serve 100 students every fall with school supplies to be ready for school - and we don't have it," said Sisters Family Access Network advocate Theresa Slavkovsky.

Slavkovsky said the supplies represent a vital need for Sisters families. Some rely upon the donations each year; there are also families new to the area and families finding themselves needing help for the first time.

"We have families who have been here and never had to use (the donation program) and now they have to use it because of their new (life) situation," Slavkovsky said.

The following new school supply items are needed:

1-inch three-ring binders; subject tab dividers for binders; 4x6 and 5x8 index cards; composition notebooks; wooden rulers with inches and centimeters; colored pencils; colored markers;

three-ring zip pencil pouches and pencil boxes; Fiskars scissors; watercolor paints; glue sticks; two-pocket folders; yellow highlighters; notebook paper; pens; pencils; college-ruled spiral notebooks; dry-erase markers; and white erasers.

School supplies collected will be distributed to students in need at the Sisters Family Access Network (FAN) office located in Sisters School District Administration building at 525 E. Cascade Ave. Distribution will begin August 26, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m..

Call 541-549-0155 for more information.