KidSmart Operation Push for Pencils in Stretch Drive

KidSmart's Push for Pencils is in full swing in the month of August. The storefront operation in Bridgeton has been providing a full array of school supplies for children in need for the past nine years.

The mission is to ensure that children and their classrooms in the St. Louis metro area have the basic tools for learning by transferring, at no cost, the community's surplus supplies and merchandise into the hands of teachers for school children in need.

“We collect everything kids need in the way of supplies and distribute them through our schools with the most need, free of charge,” Jessica Dowell, the store's manager, said. 

“For the very first time in nine years, we are able to provide supplies for all of our 90,000 plus children of need in the bistate community,” she said.

There are three types of schools served by KidSmart.

Enrolled

KidSmart has just enough storage space to collect and distribute supplies to 110 schools on its enrolled list. Teachers can come in and shop for free for items, one time per month.

100 Percent Club

This is a list of schools where the makeup is an enrollment of at least 70 percent of the students on free or reduced lunch. Teachers on this list are able to shop KidSmart four times per month.

Volunteer to Shop

This is a group of schools with needs not quite as great as those on the enrolled poverty list. This group shops when extra supplies become available.

Nearly 150 businesses and schools throughout St. Louis are benefactors of KidSmart. These groups donate both cash and supplies to build up the donation inventory annually.

Old Bonhomme School in the Ladue School District is one of the official collection points for the annual drive.

The drive runs through Aug. 31, but of course, donations in cash donations or gifts in kind will always be gladly accepted.

“The need is greater than ever. We would love to expand out list, but we have run out of storage space here (in Bridgeton). We cannot store any more items presently,” Dowell said.

Teachers who shop KidSmart are encouraged to turn around and give volunteer items in the store. KidSmart needs help with sorting and stocking the items, and serving teachers on the display floor.

The typical donated items are binders, scissors, rulers/yardsticks, glue, paint, markers, pens, pencils and a host of other items. Nothing of value is turned away.

“When a teacher comes here, they leave with an average of $650 worth of school supplies,” Dowell said.

In many cases, without the annual generosity of KidSmart, thousands of children would return to school with inadequate supplies.