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More than 500 backpacks were distributed during the Flagstaff Back to School Fair held on Saturday, July 11 at the Flagstaff Family Food Center — Food Bank and Kitchen.
The free backpacks were filled by volunteers with school supplies for preschool to high school students, which helped speed up the distribution process and reduce the waiting time for families who had already gathered before the 9 a.m. start time.
An additional 180 backpacks were distributed at the food center on July 14, said Hannah Brand, Children’s Literacy and Volunteer coordinator at the center.
The event was sponsored by the Flagstaff Family Food Center in partnership with the Arizona Community Foundation of Flagstaff, the Assistance League of Flagstaff and the United Way of Northern Arizona.
More than 20 social services and nonprofit agencies helped connect children and their families to local resources for assistance.
Some of the scheduled vendors include: Arizona Grandparent Ambassadors, Arizona Nutrition Network, Arizona Center for Afterschool Excellence, Assistance League of Flagstaff — Operation School Bell, Association for Supportive ChildCare, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Coconino Coalition for Children & Youth, Coconino County WIC Program, Coconino County Public Health Services District — Tobacco and Chronic Disease, Expect More Arizona, First Things First, Flagstaff Medical Center — Trauma Services, Flagstaff Resource Center, Girl Scouts Arizona Cactus Pine, Guidance Center, Head Heart Hands Preschool, Material and Child Health Program at North Country Health Care, McKinney Vento Program, Kingdom Kids Preschool and Play Center, NACOG Head Start, Parenting Arizona, Partnership for Native American Cancer Prevention, Native Americans for Community Action — Circles of Care, Peak School, Transformative Learning Center and United HealthCare Community Plan.