Thousands of Miami Gardens children got a head start on the new school year Saturday as a community giveaway put fresh backpacks and school supplies within reach for families preparing for class.
The annual Community Backpack Drive distributed free backpacks and supplies while adding games and family-friendly activities to the back-to-school push, according to Local 10. For parents juggling the cost of school shopping, the event offered more than a cheerful photo op: It removed at least one major item from the back-to-school bill.
A School-Year Lift Built Around Basic Needs
Unity on the Bay scheduled the Miami Gardens distribution party from 9 a.m. to noon and said the drive was designed to help families avoid having to choose between food and school supplies. The organization also promoted a campaign matching donations up to $10,000, according to Unity on the Bay.
The giveaway has become a recurring South Florida tradition rather than a one-season experiment. In 2022, CBS Miami reported that Unity on the Bay was in its 17th consecutive year of hosting the drive, distributing more than 5,500 bookbags that year and estimating that the effort had served 53,700 children through community donations and partner support.
The Miami Gardens event also lands amid a broader Miami-Dade back-to-school effort. The county said a July 24 supply drive in Homestead would combine free school supplies with educational resources, community connections and family activities, according to Miami-Dade County.
