All year long, Connie S. Amaya packs her home with boxes of backpacks to give away at the annual free backpack fundraiser.
LOCKHART, Texas — For the sixth year, Lockhart grandmother Connie S. Amaya is using her retirement savings to purchase backpacks for those in need in her community.
Every year before the new school year starts, Amaya fills her house with backpacks and boxes of school supplies to give away at school giveaways.
“Backpacks are like expensive equipment that students need,” Amaya said. “Some students just carry paper, pencils and pens.”
Amaya previously worked as an office worker for the school district and saw the needs of many students firsthand, which prompted her and her grandson, John Matthew “JMAT” Bernal, to start a backpack fundraiser in their front yard six years ago.
“It started with two tables in front of her house and as you can see, there are like 30 tables here and it’s been so exciting to see it grow so much,” Bernal said.
Six years later, they are now distributing their 4,000th backpack to the Lockhart community.
“Seeing them happy makes me happy too,” Amaya said.
The initiative helps Lockhart residents like participant Desiree Stoudemire, who is a single parent raising five children, ages 11 months to 10 years old.
“Last year it was just him out there and there were a lot of people like me, but this year everyone is in school so it’s been a big help for me,” Stoudemire said. “They’ve helped me out a lot so I’m grateful.”
A big part of what keeps Amaya going is her family: the volunteers who help out include her brothers, sisters, brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law.
“We support each other in everything we do,” Amaya says. “Family is really important to us.”
Amaya’s free backpack drives have become a tradition that not only her family but the whole community looks forward to, and she hopes to keep it going for as long as possible and pass it on to future generations.
Thanks to the overwhelming support we received from the community this year, Amaya’s Backpack Drive has become a non-profit. If you’re interested in helping make the drive even bigger next year, you can donate through Amaya’s website.
“I think the amount of support we’ve received also makes it really special,” Bernal said.
