Walmart, H-E-B collect school supplies for students

By LYNETTE SOWELL

Cove Leader-Press

On Friday afternoon, CCISD and Copperas Cove Walmart cut the ribbon to begin the 10th annual Stuff the Bus which ran from Aug. 9-11. 

Supplies collected through Stuff the Bus will be given to students in need in the district, via campus Communities in Schools. 

More than 60 percent of CCISD students qualify for free or reduced lunch, so the school supplies will come in handy district wide. To qualify for free meals, according to Federal Guidelines, families must be at 130 percent of the poverty line or 185 percent of the poverty level for reduced lunch. 

Over the weekend, student groups and volunteers manned the doors on each side of Wal-Mart, passing out fliers about the collection drive that ran through Sunday.

CCISD Superintendent Joseph Burns was on hand Friday for the ribbon cutting. Burns expressed his thanks to Walmart along with Star Group – Veterans Helping Veterans that help sponsor the event each year. 

Throughout the weekend, Star Group – Veterans Helping Veterans had a food truck on site where they sold hot dogs and cold drinks for donations, with the donations going to the school supplies drive. 

Also present on Friday were representatives with Mt. Sinai HRAM Chapter 42, who presented a $500 check to the district for school supplies. 

One key individual on Friday was Elizabeth Callahan, a bus driver for 19 years with CCISD. 

“I am here to help keep the items sorted as they come in,” Callahan said. Posted above the seats of the big yellow school bus were signs noting the type of school supply, such as pens, pencils, paper, folders, and more, which were all sorted throughout the weekend as donations came in, bag by bag and cart by cart. 

Annually, Stuff the Bus collects between $35,000 and $50,000 worth of school supplies which goes directly to CCISD students in need. 

For this year, Stuff the Bus was estimated to have collected at least that much for 2024.

With the receipt of cash donations, school supplies were purchased with those funds and added to the collection. 

On Friday, H-E-B Plus! in Copperas Cove likewise collected school supplies for students with the assistance of the Copperas Cove Police Department. 

They had hot dogs for the first 200 and also had representatives on hand that made Kiddo Cards for children.