JEFFERSON COUNTY — 3,378 students in Jefferson County are considered low-income and their families are burdened with the cost of school supplies. The National Retail Federation estimates parents will spend over $95 on each of their child’s school supply list this year.

United Way’s tenth annual Stuff the Bus school supply drive took place during the month of July in hopes of alleviating some of the burden those families feel. Over 17,000 items were collected; the weight of 1.5 cars!  The value of all the items collected and the cash donations totaled $15,745!

Jen Miller, Executive Director of United Way of South Central Illinois said, “We cannot thank the community enough for their generous support this year! We were honored to partner with so many great businesses to make Stuff the Bus a huge success.

If you would still like to support Stuff the Bus, school supplies are still being collected at Continental Tire and Staples.