Neighbors and Friends Swap Back-To-School Clothes
Shauna EricksonFeatured Photo: Chairman Trulee Packer, center, sorts and sizes pants with Samantha Packer, left, and Marisa Flores, right. Photo by Shauna Erikson.
Preparing for a new school year is always stressful.
“Do I have enough pencils, pens, folders, paper and markers?”
Then the most important question of all: “What am I going to wear on the first day?” Critical decision!
Trusted World, Frisco Moms Care, and the members in the Little Elm Area of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teamed up on Saturday, August 6th, to provide a huge, free, Back-To-School community clothes closet for students and their family members of all ages.
The grassroots effort was supplied by the seven Church of Jesus Christ congregations in the area, whose members scoured their closets and drawers looking for new or gently used items that were no longer needed. Soon trucks, vans and cars loaded with giant bags of clothing began showing up at the Church building on Martop Road in Oak Point.
Dozens of volunteers worked tirelessly to sort and fold the items. Then they were divided into different rooms by sizes, including adults, teens, boys, girls, infants, formal wear, outerwear, shoes, and even Halloween costumes and toys.
Guests were invited to select as many things as they wanted. Many made more than one trip to unload full bags in their cars.
At the end of the day, Trusted World sent a large truck which was loaded with dozens of bags of unclaimed items to be shared with Frisco Moms Care and others of the many Trusted World partners, making sure that many families in this area are well equipped for a successful school year.
Shauna Erikson is a member of the Little Elm Stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She has a BS in English, BYU, Masters SMU, 6 children, and 14 grandchildren. Except for 7 years in Washington DC, she has lived in North Texas since 1984.
