People were lined up hours before Combine Community Services’ 29th Tools for School started Wednesday for families to pick up school supplies and get ready for the school year.
Ami Pitt, Project Independence and Hand-Up case manager, said even though the doors at Lakeview Middle School opened at 9 a.m. for Tools for School, there were people waiting since 7 a.m., with a line out into the parking.
Warsaw Community Schools offered lunch items Wednesday and fed 150 students.
“(WCS) made sure our morning line was all taken care of before they were all done,” Pitt said.
The Good News Caboose and Warsaw Community Schools STEM bus were available to keep students entertained while waiting in line.
There were volunteers from Medtronic and other individuals to hand out school supplies.
Students were able to select items such as colored pencils, markers, composition books, three-ring binders, rulers, protractors and compasses, large pink erasers, Elmer’s washable school glue, No. 2 pencils, single-subject notebooks (wide and college rule), headphones and ear pods, calculators, highlighters, two-pocket folders (red and green), kids’ soft-handle scissors, 24-count crayons and dry erase markers.

    Warsaw Area Career Center cosmetology teacher Tina Streby (R) gives Gabe Reynolds a haircut during Tools For School Wednesday. Photo by Jackie Gorski, Times-Union
  

Warsaw Morning Optimist Club donated backpacks for the event. The Indiana Fever sent pens to be given out for the event. Changing Footprints donated 1,619 pairs of shoes. If there were any shoes left over after the event, they would be given to Living in Transition Effectively (LITE), “so we are using all of these shoes to service our county,” Pitt said.
CCS also receives Walmart returns of underwear and that was available for students.
Also during Tools for School, representatives from WCS and Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation were on hand to answer questions and register any students that hadn’t registered for school yet.
Kiira Churchill, director of communications, said this is the third year TVSC has been part of the Tools for School event. As of about 10 a.m., she had not registered any students at the event. However, she did say TVSC did have an in-person registration day Tuesday, as well today. She hoped to see students possibly register Wednesday.
In years past, Tools for School was held at the Kosciusko County Fairgrounds. This year, it was at Lakeview Middle School in order to do more haircuts as the Warsaw Area Career Center (WACC) opened its own licensed salon and cosmetology school at the school last year.
WACC cosmetology instructor Tina Streby said she asked if Tools of Schools could be at Lakeview since the salon was available and there could be lots of stylists that could help out with the event. Stylists were WACC students, as well as stylists from other industry salons.
Having Tools for School at Lakeview this year helps Streby’s students work on more students’ hair, helps the community and helps get more students in and out faster.
Last year, about 150 haircuts were given. Streby didn’t have an estimate of how many haircuts were given as of 10 a.m. Wednesday.
The event is for all students in Kosciusko County, whether they go to public or private schools or are homeschooled.
Pitt said compared to previous years, the need for the event is up. Typically, Tools for School services about 1,200 students. Pitt said she wouldn’t be surprised if the event helped 1,500 students Wednesday.
“We have a huge need in our community right now. We are seeing need at CCS up. We are seeing well over 700 families a month for groceries. We are seeing need up for our consultation for our attorney, the attorney that can consult. We also have Bowen Health come in. We are seeing that need up. On our self-sufficiency end with our programs, we have a large waitlist. Our caseloads are full,” Pitt said. “I think the economy is really affecting (things) and we see the need is huge. Our community comes together like no other, especially to take care of our children. Combined Community Services is in need of donations, monetary donations, just because of the need.”