Each year across the nation children start or return to school, many of them doing so with no school supplies, old clothes and a sense of not fitting in.

Kiwanis of Santa Maria’s back-to-school shopping program is an event to help underprivileged children start the school year with the tools necessary for success. This year however, will be different due to COVID-19, but with the same goal of supporting local underprivileged children.

On Saturday, Aug. 29, Kiwanis of Santa Maria Noontime, and Kiwanis of Santa Maria Night Time will be partnering to provide 100 children from the Santa Maria Valley each with a $75 pre-loaded Old Navy Gift Card.

The children can go shopping for new clothes such as jeans, t-shirts, shoes, socks, and everything else to outfit a child for school. All children will also receive school supplies, such as headphones for distance learning, notebooks, pencils, rulers and binders.

The youngsters will be invited to a drive-thru pancake breakfast, 8:30-10 a.m. at Minami Community Center, 600 W. Enos Drive, Santa Maria, where they will pick up their gift card and school supplies.

Founded in 1915, Kiwanis International is a global organization of clubs and members dedicated to serving the world’s children.

Kiwanis and its family of clubs, including Circle K International for university students, Key Club for students age 14-18, Builders Club for students age 11–14, K-Kids for students age 6–12, and Aktion Club for adults living with disabilities, annually dedicate more than 18.5 million service hours to strengthen communities.

The Kiwanis International family comprises nearly 558,000 adult and youth members 82 nations and geographic areas. Visit www.kiwanis.org for more information.