Second Annual Back to School Bash Saturday in Pepin Park

This Saturday, the Second Annual Back to School Bash will provide fun, preparation and supplies for local students in need at Pepin Park, said organizer Christy Edmonds of Havre.

The activities are in conjunction with the Salvation Army’s Back to School Bash, which supplies backpacks and school supplies for low-income families, Edmonds said, adding that her organization will provide free shoes and haircuts as well as hosting carnival games, lunch and a guest speaker.

Edmonds said anyone kindergarten through 12th-grade is eligible for the shoes and haircuts.

Salvation Army Director Trina Crawford said backpacks and school supplies will be guaranteed for ages kindergarten to eighth-grade; students who are in ninth- to 12th-grade will be a case-by-case basis.

The backpacks will be given out on demand, Crawford said, meaning parents, when they come in, will need to know what grades their children are starting in and, preferably, what teacher they will have, due to different teachers requiring different materials.

After the families are finished with the sign-in with Crawford, they can get their haircut and a pair of shoes including a pair of socks, Edmonds said. The people who will be cutting hair will be a mixture of beauticians from around the region who are volunteering their time and skills for the event, she said.

Edmonds added that the event will have carnival games such as a bean bag toss, water gun game, a duck pond and others, where kids can collect tickets and cash them in for prizes.

Fifth Avenue Church is also planning to do a cake walk this year for the event, Edmonds said, adding that they have also gotten a guest speaker, Helena children’s minister Bob Vande Sandt.

Vande Sandt said he has been doing events like this all over Montana for 11 years and that he is a ventriloquist. He has been doing ventriloquism since he was in sixth-grade and when he became a children’s minister he was able to incorporate that skill into his work, Vande Sandt said. He said he does Bible stories, jokes and many other things while he’s at the event and that it is very fun and entertaining for all ages.

He added that he had been approached by his old children’s minister, Curt Curtis, who is a pastor at Havre Assembly of God, who had asked him if he was interested in the event.

Events like this are important, for the kids as well as the community, Vande Sandt said.

“I love doing this kind of stuff,” Vande Sandt said, “just because it meets a need in the community with people who need school supplies and that kind of stuff; also the things they are doing with the shoes is just amazing.

“I think kids always need shoes, kids always need school supplies,” he added.

He added that if invited back he would be interested in doing this event again next year, as well as other ones.

What’s been going on

Crawford said that the Back to School Bash has been supplying backpacks and school supplies for 13 years, starting the planning process every year around May, but it was not until collaborating with Edmonds that it’s ever been a large community event like it has been in the past couple of years.

The beneficial part of the collaboration is that parents and people can come and get all these services at one time and place, Crawford said. She added that the collaboration also makes the event fun for everyone.

“It’s a beautiful thing,” Crawford said.

“(It’s) something that I’ve wanted to do, but being one person and trying to do the back to school, I couldn’t pull it off by myself,” Crawford said. “(Edmonds) stepping in and having that same dream has been wonderful to see come around.”

Edmonds said that six years ago she started working in the school district and saw children in need of shoes and haircuts, needing a fresh start to the school year.

She said after that she put together a committee for the event to work on fundraisers and help organize everything, adding that the committee this year was made up of five people, including herself.

“The more minds you have working on something,” Edmonds said, “you can all kind of come up and tweek things to make it better.”

This year she started planning and fundraising for the event in January, she said, adding that in June for one of the fundraisers they had done a pork cook off and silent auction at the Eagles Club.

In June, Edmonds added, she also orders the shoes from an organization called Samaritan’s Feet, a non-profit which supplies shoes for these kinds of organizations.

She said that last year the event was a success, providing 100 shoes to kids and everyone having fun.

“That was just my heart,” Edmonds said, “seeing these kids coming and needing and so desperately.”

Last year, Crawford said, the event supplied more than 50 families with backpacks and school supplies, with 110 backpacks given out.

Crawford added that she hopes more people come this year.

Edmonds said she hopes to do more events in the future and possibly buy a bounce house for the Back to School Bash.

Thank you

Crawford thanked Walmart and Gary & Leo’s Fresh Foods for their donations this year.

“Walmart has been gracious enough, not only through donations but through monetary donations,” Crawford said, adding that Walmart also awarded a grant, specifically for this event.

Gary & Leo’s is also running a Back to School backpack program for the Salvation Army, Crawford said, which is another way people can donate to the event, with backpacks costing $25.

She also wanted to thank all the community donors who played a big part in making the event possible, she said.

“Thank you to all those who have donated, we wouldn’t be able to do it without people that are willing to do those donations,” she added, “that’s huge for us.”

Volunteers and donations

Crawford said that supplies are still coming in and the Salvation Army is still taking donations up until Friday. She added that all donations should be brought to the Salvation Army Sally Ann Thrift Store.

The more volunteers they have, the faster they can move through the process, Crawford said, adding that to volunteer for the event people can call 265-6411 extension 101, and to leave a message with name and number and she will call back with more information. Volunteers must be an adult.

Edmonds said she is also looking for volunteers, for the event and for the committee.

She said for volunteers for this event can either call her ahead of time or show up to the event and ask, adding that if volunteers want to make salads and cookies they will need to call her ahead of time at 390-0977.

“I love this community,” Crawford said. “It always amazes me with how generous they are.”