Jaida Burke was 8 years old when she decided Cobb County kids shouldn't start school without supplies. Eight years later, the 16-year-old stood inside the Cobb County Civic Center on Saturday, July 18, watching 100 volunteers sort pencils, highlighters, notebooks and 300 mental health kits into backpacks bound for families across the county.
The event marked the sixth annual "Backing the Need" Backpack & School Supply Drive, a partnership between Burke's Marietta-based nonprofit Kids Care and the Cobb County Police Department. Co-founder Amie Burke, Jaida's mother, told Atlanta News First she hopes at least 500 backpacks will reach students before the school year begins.
"It takes some stress off them, maybe use that money for food and not have to worry about it," Jaida Burke said. "And it helps the kids, too, because they can go into school feeling confident, more prepared and more seen knowing that their community really has their back."
Community sponsors placed donation boxes around town in the weeks leading up to the packing day, which ran from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Volunteers spent hours filling bags that will be distributed through about a dozen local nonprofits.
Through last year's fifth cycle, Kids Care donated 1,121 backpacks valued at more than $110,000 in supplies, according to the organization's impact report. Since launching in 2021, the program has provided more than 3,000 backpacks total before Saturday's haul.
Sgt. Willie Neiro of the Cobb County Police Community Affairs Unit, a co-host of the drive, said the department values the partnership with families and the business community in collecting supplies for those in need.
Saturday's event also featured Rose, the Cobb County District Attorney's comfort dog, a look inside a CCPD patrol car and performances by the Cobb PALS Youth Step Team, according to the county's event calendar.
Hailey Nadeau, a volunteer who has helped Kids Care since its first drive in 2021, was back again Saturday sorting supplies alongside the team.
How families can get supplies
Backpacks and school supplies will be available at the Cobb County Police Department's National Night Out on Thursday, July 30, at Jim R. Miller Park, 2245 Callaway Road, Marietta, from 6 to 9 p.m. The free event also includes a touch-a-truck area, animal adoptions, bounce houses, food trucks and fireworks. No registration is required. Supplies are available while they last.
