Dad-of-three Pablo Hernandez from Santa Paula carefully placed a pencil case, a pencil, and other school stationery essentials in the new backpacks he picked up for his kids.
It’s an opportunity to make sure his children have what they need for the new school year. And a way to set them up for success.
"It's a lot of help for the kids and for himself as well because it's really expensive for three kids," Hernandez told KCLU.
"And it's going to help them feel better when they're going to get all these supplies, then it's going to prepare them better for school," he said.
Hernandez is one of a number of families being provided with school supplies at this one-day event hosted by non-profit School on Wheels and Catholic Charities in Ventura.
"We serve children experiencing homelessness K through 12th grade, providing them with academic support through free one-on-one tutoring, scholarships, free school supplies," explained Sarah Fraza, Regional Manager for School on Wheels. She said that the event removes financial barriers for kids to thrive at school, removes stigmas, and gives kids dignity.
"They have an opportunity to truly shop, and they can pick and choose what they like," said Fraza. "They can pick a backpack in their favorite color, or there's like a little Pokémon backpack. Maybe, you know, they can find all of their favorite things and go into school knowing that they got to choose that and that it wasn't handed to them with no option."
"We want to make sure that the kids here today aren't experiencing any barriers and feeling just the same as all of the classmates, making sure they feel fully supported," explained Fraza. "They have absolutely everything that they need without having to worry about the cost of it."
Fraza knows all too well that the last few months have been tough for many of these families. She said this is one way to provide community support.
"Especially with all the changes that are happening right now with our government and in our communities, with ICE coming through we really want to create a sense of safety in our community and a sense of like love and just wrapping everybody with a lot of support and making sure that they know that there's a space for everybody here. So we are handing out free school supplies to everyone and making that everybody feels confident and supported going into the next school year," she said.
Jeannette Sanchez-Palacios, Ventura's mayor, agreed. She said providing support to underserved parts of the community is a way to send a message to those who are fearful right now.
"I think a lot of them are scared. A lot of people might feel that people don't care about them or want them in our community. And I think these types of events hopefully show them that we do care and that we want them here and that want to help them be successful. We want to see their children thrive, and we want to be a part of that. We are a community and as a community we care for one another," said Sanchez-Palacios.
So these backpacks are a practical help. But they’re also packed with a lot of love.
