Backpack Hero is a communitywide outreach event where East Hillsborough community partners, churches and local businesses come together to provide backpacks, school supplies and other critical resources for school-aged children in need within the Eastern and Southern Hillsborough County area. Registration is required to ensure there are resources available for each child.
“This is the third anniversary of this event,” said Pat Simmons, president and founder of Bikes For Christ. “This communitywide partnership of businesses, churches and nonprofits provides filled backpacks to more than 2,000 children within our community. Kids from Seffner to Sun City Center, ranging from preschool to high school, will leave with backpacks filled with needed school supplies and lots of helpful information for parents and caregivers about local services available throughout our community.”
This year’s sponsors of Backpack Hero are ECHO, Hope for Her and Bikes For Christ.
“Registration for the event is required and is taking place at both ECHO resource centers in Brandon and Riverview, Hope for Her in Brandon and Enterprising Latinas in Wimauma and begins on June 24,” Simmons said. “The Rotary Clubs of Brandon and FishHawk-Riverview are providing food and preparing it on-site the day of the events, which take place on July 27 in Brandon at Bay Life Church in Brandon and August 3 at the brand-new AdventHealth hospital on Highway 301 in Riverview. Boricuas de Corazon will be providing take-home food provisions for those families in need at both event sites.”
Volunteers are needed for this event.
“We need both volunteers and donations of school supplies,” Simmons said. “This can be from individuals or churches, civic or social groups. We anticipate at least 35 community partners tabling at these events helping our families understand a wide variety of services available to them in our community. There will be door prizes throughout the event and bicycle giveaways.”
All the nonprofits involved with Backpack Hero hope to help as many families as possible.
“We hope to serve as many children and families as possible,” Simmons said. “We will have many local nonprofits and other community resources represented at each event to provide assistance of all types for those in need.”
If you’d like to learn more about the Backpack Hero program, you can visit its website at www.bphero.org.
