School supply Give-Away, Ice cream, and Family
After our summer field day on June, LIFT-Chicago hosted a second networking opportunity for members, this time creating an in-person ‘Back to School Bash’ at our new office, Hatch 41 in Bronzeville, beginning on August 20th from 2 PM to 4 PM and running through August 23rd.
Many generous donors, including the Boys & Girls Club and BCG, helped LIFT-Chicago provide school supplies —such as notebooks, pencils, markers, rulers, and many other necessities— to LIFTers this year. We also prepared college supplies to encourage our parents to restart their education as well!
For three days, LIFT-Chicago gave away packed bags, with the first day serving as a social gathering and opening event. Parents, coaches, and staff had a great opportunity to meet each other in person, and some of them expressed a desire for further in person coaching at Hatch 41. Members mingled while enjoying music and delicious ice cream courtesy of Ben & Jerry’s.
They were free to choose stationary and other materials required for a successful return to school. Parents and children were all looking forward to their first day of school that following Monday, sharing this excitement with others. While parents interacted with other members and staff, kids hung out with each other by exploring the office and enjoying their ice creams.
The following Monday and Tuesday, LIFT-Chicago opened the office’s doors from morning to evening and continued to distribute bags to parents who did not have time to pick up supplies on opening day. While the picking up packed bags, members shared stories about their first day at school and their wishes to have a safe and successful 2022-2023 school year.
In total over 40 families participated in our ‘Back to School Bash’ event, and over 150 packed bags went to LIFTers homes across three days.
The entire LIFT-Chicago team contributed to making our ‘Back to School Bash’ event for the members. Rolonda directed the overall event by communicating via text, call, and email; Jennifer managed event day emergencies including getting extra school supplies when inventory ran low; Sarah gave a strong buttress to enable staff to operate the event; Rachel and Naomi helped out on the opening day of the event and made time for members even as they were also preparing the LIT session; lastly and certainly not least our summer intern Jiae provided constant assistance in the days leading up to the ‘Back to School Bash’ and throughout the three day in-person event.
Thank you to our members who attended this event, our generous donors, and everyone who made this year’s ‘Back to School Bash’ a huge success!