Annual Back to School Bash Saturday at Mon County Center
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MORGANTOWN - Mary Beth Selby jokes that employees at Walmart and other local retailers probably have her on a list of some description.
After all, not everybody makes a habit of rolling up to the checkout lane with shopping carts piled full of backpacks, markers, paper and colored pencils.
But that's just part of the gig when you're back-to-school shopping for well over 1,000.
As of Monday morning, about 1,300 students were pre-registered for Pantry Plus More's annual Back to School Bash to be held from 10 a.m.- 2 p.m. Saturday at the Mon County Center in Mylan Park.
Registration will remain open through the nonprofit's Facebook page until noon Friday but isn't required to take part in the school supply giveaway.
The free event is open to all school-age children, regardless of whether their school is public, private, chartered or at home.
The Back to School Bash is the largest single-day event undertaken by Pantry Plus More each year. The annual undertaking began in 2018 with the goal of giving every kid in the county the confidence that comes with showing up for the first day of class with a brand-new backpack full of school supplies.
Selby, a teacher at Mountainview Elementary and chair of the Back to School Bash, said the goal is to get kids excited about returning to school.
"We really pride ourselves in being able to provide name brand backpacks. We want kids to feel excited and proud going to school. You know - look good, feel good, do good," she said. "We collaborate with the teachers and educators in the county to make sure we're getting the most needed things on the lists, the most expensive things, like backpacks, name brand markers and lunchboxes, water bottles, all sorts of things."
In addition to the mountains of supplies that will be provided for pupil perusal, the event will include community resources, including the Monongalia County Health Department on site providing sports physicals.
"I think that this year our bash is going to be bigger than ever. We want the kids to be excited and engaged, and we also want to help take that burden off of families, because it can be a lot when you have multiple kids going back to school," Selby said.
Some 1,400 kids made their way through the event last year. Selby said the small army of Pantry Plus More volunteers are prepared for as many as 1,600 on Saturday.
"The really cool thing about Pantry Plus More is that anything that doesn't get used at our Back to School Bash is pushed into our in-school pantries that we have in elementary schools, middle schools and high schools across the county. So, students who don't get to come to the Bash will still have access to those items within the first week of school," Selby said.
This year's event is being supported by a number of major donors including, Northeast Natural Energy, Hazel Ruby McQuain Charitable Trust, Longview Power Charitable Fund, Lowe's of Morgantown and Chestnut Ridge Church.
Anyone interested in volunteering can find a link on the Pantry Plus More Facebook page. Financial contributions can be made through pantryplusmore.org.