PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — Back to Basics is a local nonprofit that has been serving Palm Beach County for more than 40 years.
The organization has a program dedicated to providing school uniforms to 60 schools across Palm Beach County. To date, they have given 23,000 uniforms to elementary and middle school students.
The organization noticed that many families do not always have laundry facilities accessible, and students were missing class because they were not able to wash their school clothes
Last year, Back to Basics decided to expand its mission to include schools in the Glades area. They increased the number of tops and bottoms provided to each child. Previously, students received one top and one bottom; with the expansion, students would receive four tops and two bottoms.
This year, they are having to scale back their expansion due to higher costs and tariffs.
WPTV reporter Christy Waite spoke with Mike O'Dell, the director of Back to Basics, who says this year's shipment came with a hefty price tag.
"We received a notification from our uniform supplier that would see something like 6-8% tariff increase for those uniforms. An overall increase of somewhere between $10,000 and $12,000," O'Dell said.
In addition to the tariffs, O'Dell says the price of fabric has also contributed to the increase of cost.
Despite these financial challenges, Back to Basics plans to provide more than 20,000 uniforms to 10,000 children this school year.
Back to Basics is always open to donations. If you would like to help, you can visit their website here.
