ONE BAG AT A TIME. Since 2020, We Care Eau Claire has provided nearly 8,000 backpacks to students across the Eau Claire Area School District (ECASD). The nonprofit will gather once again on Monday, Aug. 17 in Phoenix Park (330 Riverfront Terrace, Eau Claire) to provide students with essential school supplies – all they need to do is bring their own backpack to fill! (Submitted photos)

For many families in Eau Claire, a new school year means navigating more than just the required school supply lists. It could involve financial strains, coordinating after school care and in turn, a search for community support. 

Year after year, since 2020, the “We Care Eau Claire” initiative does its best to meet these realities head-on and with empathy, pairing families and caregivers with local resources to ensure each student – from kindergartners to high schoolers – is prepared to begin the school year on the right track.

Late this summer, a collection of 20-plus area churches will come together once again with the ambitious goal to fill roughly 2,000 backpacks for students. If organizers meet that goal, it would put them over the 8,000 mark, and that much closer to 10,000 backpacks distributed. 

“(It’s) likely unheard of in my world to have this many churches working together,” Jordan VanProosdy, president of We Care Eau Claire, said. “It is so beautiful to see people working together … and (now), because we’re a nonprofit, then we can handle some of these things in a different capacity.”

We Care Eau Claire, which gained nonprofit status last spring, serves students in grades kindergarten through 12 in the Eau Claire Area School District (ECASD).

This Monday, Aug. 17, volunteers will fill backpacks with school supplies and offer them to families ahead of this school year. 

We Care Eau Claire Backpack Drive FAQs

Who is able to attend?

This is an event focused on families with a child in the Eau Claire Area School District (ECASD), from kindergarten through grade 12. We Care Eau Claire targets families of low-income and families that are in need.

What will each child receive?

Each child will receive a backpack with the school supplies that the ECASD recommends for their grade level. Culver’s custard and kid’s meal coupons are given by Bowe Business Group. Feed My People Food Bank will be there to provide food certificates for families. Other community groups provide hygiene kits, books, resources and other items to prepare families for the upcoming school year.

Do you need to sign up or RSVP?

There is no need to RSVP for this free event. Come when you are able and wait in line at Phoenix Park in downtown Eau Claire, for your school supplies and donations.

What happens to any extra supplies?

All leftover supplies are brought to the ECASD Board Office and are given out to children in the district who are in need of supplies throughout the year.

More than hundreds of each school supplies needed (markers, pictured above) are secured through donations from Eau Claire businesses, churches and nonprofits. (Submitted photo)

These numbers mirror the over one thousand children who, over the course of three-plus hours, secure needed items for the next school year in downtown Eau Claire's Phoenix Park. (Submitted photo)

VanProosdy noted that religious affiliation with any of the participating churches is not a requirement for families in need of the We Care Eau Claire event's school supplies.

Notably, last year's supplies drive saw more than 550 elementary schoolers take packed backpacks. In contrast, middle school students across the ECASD were provided with just under 300 backpacks.

“Everybody wants to help the kindergartner, but nobody wants to help the eighth grader,” VanProosdy said of the data.

As We Care Eau Claire continues to grow and address all student needs across the district, VanProosdy says, “(families) just see that churches are willing to work together on something and that they matter.”

One of the initiative’s strengths is its commitment to support non-English speaking households; currently, the nonprofit provides translation services in Spanish, Hmong, Arabic and French.

“(It’s) likely unheard of in my world to have many churches working together. ... “(Families) just see that churches are willing to work together on something and that they matter.” –Jordan VanProosdy, president of We Care Eau Claire

We Care Eau Claire volunteers work with the ECASD, local pastors who speak a second language and bilingual volunteers to secure interpreters. More often than not, these families will return in subsequent years to return the generosity and offer translation for others in their community.

“That’s the heart behind (We Care Eau Claire): What could I bring to the table that would help these families?” VanProosdy said.

Looking ahead, We Care Eau Claire’s board of directors believe they have only just begun to realize the annual program’s local impact. By bringing heart and mind together, organizers aim to deepen connections with the more than 200 annual volunteers, 40-plus participating nonprofits and extend their reach to assist ECASD educators all school year long.

We Care Eau Claire will host its annual school supplies collection from 4-7pm on Monday, Aug. 17 at Phoenix Park (330 Riverfront Terrace, Eau Claire). To learn more about the area nonprofit and ways to volunteer, donate, or have your business participate, visit wecareeauclaire.com.