Countywide : Homeless Pupils Get Class Treats

For a group of children accustomed to going without, Thursday was like Christmas.

About two dozen homeless children who attend a special class received colorful new backpacks full of school supplies--all courtesy of teachers from the Orange Unified Education Assn.

Organizers said they hoped the giveaway provided the pupils with both an academic as well as an emotional boost.

And according to 13-year-old Hector Uriarte, both missions were accomplished.

“This makes me think I am special, that people like to help me,” said Hector, whose backpack was filled with notebooks, markers, a dictionary and a calculator. “This stuff will help. I can use them to study with and write with.”

The children were presented with the backpacks at the Orange YWCA, where they receive meals and attend Homeless Outreach Program for Education classes four times a week.

Many of the children live in motels, cars and at campsites. Because their families move so often, it is difficult for them to attend school regularly.

Hector, for example, has lived with his parents in an Anaheim motel for two years. Before that, the family lived out of a van.

Such living arrangements make the job of teaching the children difficult. Classes are designed to provide them with basic reading, writing and math lessons in hopes that eventually they will enroll in school.

Teachers who donated the backpacks and supplies said their goal is to provide the children with some of the advantages enjoyed by other students.

“These are things that we might take for granted,” said Canyon High School teacher David Reger, referring to the puzzles, crayons and paper found in the backpacks. “These are the kinds of things you might see in many homes. But a lot of these kids don’t have them.”

About 60 backpacks in all will be distributed to homeless children throughout the county. Each backpack and the supplies inside cost about $30. Teachers from throughout the Orange Unified School District purchased the items and filled the backpacks. Some added personal touches, like stuffing teddy bears inside the backpacks.

The children did not know beforehand that they would be receiving the gifts. So when they raced to choose their backpacks from a large pile, the room was filled with the sounds of excited laughter.

“Ooo, look what I got!” said Patrick McCall, a third-grader from Garden Grove, as he went through his backpack. “I like this!”