Craven County Partners In Education (PIE) will be hosting their Annual Stuff the Bus Event on Saturday, August 16 from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. in the parking lot of Staples at 3230 Dr. M.L.K. Jr. Blvd. PIE president Don Brinkley announced that B/S/H/ Home Appliances and Staples will be the Title Partners for the 20th Annual Stuff the Bus. Both organizations share PIE’s mission to start our students back to school on the road to success with the necessary school supplies. This is B/S/H/ Home Appliances 7th consecutive year of being a Title Partner for the event. “B/S/H/ is committed to improving the quality of life at home, and here in New Bern we want to help ensure that students are ready for school with the supplies they need on the first day,” explained B/S/H/ Home Appliances US Chief Technology Officer Andy MacLaren. “We recognize that purchasing school supplies may be a challenge in some homes and we embrace this opportunity to help.” Staples has been a long-time supporter and host of Stuff the Bus and this will be their second year as a Title Partner. “Staples loves partnering with PIE and hosting Stuff the Bus. I have employees who specifically request to work on the day of the event because they love to experience the volunteers’ energy and see the wonderful community support,” said Staples of New Bern General Manager Lisa Pekau. “I come from a family of educators, so this event, where you see educators and members of the community come together to donate supplies for our students so that they have the tools they need to be successful is heartwarming and just amazing!”
Volunteers from the schools and our community will be on hand and the school bus horn will be honked each time a donation is made as a way of showing thanks. PIE president Don Brinkley added, “Generous shoppers can donate school supplies for students who have been identified as in-need by their school counselors and principals.”
A shopping list is currently available on the PIE website at CravenPartners.com, and is listed on the individual schools’ websites. Monetary donations will be accepted through the PIE website.
Many businesses have agreed to be drop-off locations and will collect items until Friday, August 15th. They are:
• Brightspeed at 311 Hancock St., New Bern
• Century 21 Zaytoun-Raines at 312 S. Front St., New Bern
• Craven County Schools at 3600 Trent Rd., New Bern
• Edward Jones Investment – Dan Roberts, 301 S. Front St., New Bern
• Rowland & The Home Sales Team at 2102 Trent Rd., New Bern
• Staples New Bern at 3230 Dr. M.L.K., Jr. Blvd., New Bern
• Toyota of New Bern at 5010 US Hwy 70 East, New Bern
• White & Allen, P.A. at 901 College Ct., New Bern
• United Bank at 1725 S. Glenburnie Rd., New Bern
• United Bank at 412 S. Front St., New Bern
Last year, through the generosity of our community, Partners In Education received over $80,000 in donations and was able to assist students in all 26 schools in Craven County. Based on this success, PIE is recruiting the help of all our community partners so that we can reach even more students this year. To date, more than 45 organizations have partnered with PIE as Major Partners, demonstrating a strong sense of community and support of our public schools. They are: AlphaGraphics, B/S/H/ Home Appliances, Brightspeed, CarolinaEast Health System, Century 21 Zaytoun-Raines, Chevrolet of New Bern, Coastal Carolina Health Care, P.A., Craven County ABC Board, Craven Pamlico Regional Library, Edward Jones Investments Financial Advisors – Michael Bass, Georgiana Bowman, Joanna Carr, Robert Knisley, Kevin Page, Taylor Paramore, Dan M. Roberts IV, Jordan Silver, Bruce Fortin, Michael Sprague, First Citizens Bank, Fisher Fuel Markets, International Paper, Mitchell Hardware, Moen, Morgan’s Tavern & Grill, Neuse River Region Association of REALTORS, Inc., Piedmont Natural Gas, Pierce Group Benefits, Rowland & The Home Sales Team, Savage’s Wood Burning Pizzeria, Smithfield’s Chicken ‘N Bar-B-Q, Staples of New Bern, Taco Bell, The Harold H. Bate Foundation, The New Bern Sun Journal, Toyota of New Bern, Trent Cadillac GMC-Buick, Truist, United Bank, Weyerhaeuser Co., White & Allen, WITN-TV, WRNS 95.1, WERO Bob 93.3, and Zaxby’s Those who have or know a student in need of school supplies should contact the principal at the student’s school. All items collected will be distributed through the school counselors and principals.
For more information about this event, or how you can support PIE, contact Suzanne Gifford, Executive Director, at 252-259-5610 or Suzanne.Gifford@CravenK12.org. Visit the PIE website at CravenPartners.com to learn more about the programs offered by Partners In Education. Partners In Education is a 501(C)3 nonprofit corporation that provides grant funding and special programs to classrooms and schools within the Craven County Schools system.
