Stuff-the-bus school supply drive kicks off in Charleroi

By TAYLOR BROWN
tbrown@yourmvi.com
Once again, Charleroi Area School Board Director Thomas Nutting is on a mission to collect pencils, tablets and other school supplies before the new school year starts.
Nutting, 71, isn’t going back to the classroom, but he is going to help ensure students in his district have the essentials when school resumes next month.
His personal birthday project began last year on his 70th birthday. Instead of gifts for himself, he asked his friends and family to bring gifts of school supplies to his party to stuff backpacks for students in need.
He was able to fill 150 backpacks last year and this year, while not associated with his birthday, he says the perfect gift would be to have another successful event.
Nutting, who is also a member of the Charleroi Area School District Education Foundation, is spearheading the event, which has gained momentum in a short time throughout the community.
This year, cfsbank in Charleroi has partnered with Nutting and the education foundation to help provide school supplies. The bank, located at First Street and McKean Avenue, has set up an area in the lobby where residents can drop off donations.
In addition to cfsbank, Guttman Oil, Southwest Medical Center, NovaCare and the Charleroi Italian Club ladies auxiliary have each offered to collect donations, too.
“There are a lot of people, groups, members of surrounding communities that have been calling and dropping things off,” Nutting said. “Which is really great to see because this is for the betterment of our students.”
Donations will be collected until Aug. 11 when a party – which is quickly morphing into an extravaganza – will be held at Smitty’s Marina in Lower Speers. From 2 to 4 p.m. residents are invited to attend the Stuff the Bus event as two Charleroi buses are – hopefully – filled to the brim with school supplies.
“That day we will be having a big party,” Nutting said. “People will be able to stop down and still drop off supplies that day and will be able to mingle and enjoy themselves.”
The following day the buses will be unloaded at the Charleroi Elementary Center and donations will be sorted.
Once sorted, donation rooms will be in each of the schools to allow teachers to take supplies as they need for their students.
Superintendent Dr. Ed Zelich said the teachers are already reaching out to express their gratitude.
“It is exciting to see the mobilization of resources within our community to help meet the needs of our students,” Zelich said. “There are so many people responding right now expressing how appreciative they are. There is an entire community behind this.”
Without such support, Nutting knows students would not have the tools they need to be successful in the classroom.
“We just can’t buy all of the supplies our students need, and sometimes families struggle as well, and teachers budgets are already so thin, and there is a great need for it,” he said. “If the district itself were to take on this expense our taxes would go through the roof. It’s just not possible so weare very grateful for the generosity of our local businesses and the community who continue to step up to support our kids.”
For more information, call Nutting at 724-963-533.