The Caroline’s Promise “Community of Promise Day” will be held Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon at Caroline High School.
Shermeka Baker-Latney, the executive director of the nonprofit, partnered with 65 businesses, churches and civic organizations to conduct a free school supply drive for the county’s students. Baker-Latney said approximately 1,300 students attended the event in 2024 as they picked up a backpack and visited tables with the various supplies to help them start the school year.
Resource vendors will also be present. There will be raffles, free ice cream and VCU Health nurses will conduct health and wellness trivia games for parents while they wait in line.
This is the seventh year of the event, which began in 2019 and shifted outdoors during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is the third straight year the event will take place at CHS. Baker-Latney noted this year, the supply drive will be in the gymnasium instead of the cafeteria as the school has been undergoing renovations.
Class starts Aug. 11 in Caroline for students beginning elementary school or transitioning to middle school or high school. All other students report Aug. 12.
Baker-Latney said the event allows volunteer opportunities for students, including the CHS football team whose members assist volunteers with transporting supplies. All leftover items are distributed to counselors and family engagement specialists in the school division, who distribute them to students throughout the school year.
Value City Furniture, CVS and Rappahannock Electric Cooperative, are major corporate sponsors, among other yearly donors. The Caroline County Sheriff’s Office is instrumental, as well.
Baker-Latney said students should be present with their parents to receive supplies. She encourages students to attend so they can witness the community coming together to support their needs. Staff members from all five schools in the county will be on hand to greet students and their families.
“It’s the whole community that makes my job easier,” Baker-Latney said. “They’re the ones actually helping us accomplish this goal.”
‘Operation Ready 4 Class’ upcoming
Operation Heroes is hosting a back-to-school bash Aug. 2 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Virginia Credit Union Stadium, home of the Fredericksburg Nationals. There will be giveaways, a live DJ, free haircuts, raffles and school supplies. A child must be present to receive items. For more information, email [email protected].
New Restoration Church is hosting a supply drive on Sunday at 10 a.m. at 203 Kings Highway; UnMasked, Inc. is conducting a school supply drive on Aug. 3 from noon to 5 p.m. at the Garden Inn, 10429 Patriot Highway; Shiloh Temple of Praise is hosting an event on Aug. 9 from noon to 3 p.m. at 12 Shiloh Way in Stafford; and there will also be a community outreach supply drive on Aug. 17 at 10 a.m,. at 4820 Southpoint Parkway.
