LAKE WORTH BEACH, Fla. — Volunteers across Palm Beach County are helping pack more than 36,000 backpacks filled with school supplies for local students before the 2026-27 school year begins, according to the Education Foundation of Palm Beach County.
The backpacks will be distributed to students at 55 Title I schools throughout Palm Beach County in an effort to help children start the school year prepared with basic classroom necessities.
The initiative is organized through the Education Foundation of Palm Beach County’s Red Apple Supplies program, which supports students and teachers in some of the district’s highest-need schools.
Volunteers gathering this summer at the organization’s Lake Worth Beach facility to assemble backpacks with notebooks, pencils, folders, glue sticks and other classroom essentials.
Foundation leaders said the demand for assistance has grown dramatically since the program began eight years ago with fewer than 4,000 backpacks.
Today, nearly 40,000 children in Palm Beach County live below the poverty line, according to figures shared by the Education Foundation. Organizers say many students would otherwise begin the school year without even the most basic school supplies.
The backpack initiative is connected to Red Apple Supplies, a free teacher resource store that opened in 2016. According to the Education Foundation, the program has distributed more than $10 million in school supplies to local classrooms and now serves 105 schools across the School District of Palm Beach County.
The effort also helps reduce the financial burden many teachers face each year. Foundation officials said educators often spend between $500 and $800 of their own money on classroom supplies for students in need.
As families continue preparing for the start of school across South Florida, organizers say the need for community support remains high.
Volunteers will continue packing backpacks throughout the summer before distribution begins ahead of the August school start date.
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