After being forced to cancel the annual Christmas shopping spree for Wooldridge Elementary School children in 2020 because of pandemic restrictions, the Rotary Club of West Austin was able to resume this wonderful tradition in December 2021. The shopping spree is one of our major charitable activities.
Our Club has long been sponsoring several projects at the school such as supplying backpacks and school supplies in September, stocking a closet at the school with needed clothing, holding one of our meetings at the school to hear student council presentations, reading to classes during Black History month, and donating time and money for specific needed school supplies.
Wooldridge Elementary School has a large enrollment of underserved students, many of whom only speak Spanish. The shopping spree was the idea of one of our late, esteemed members, Jerry Goodrich, who was also a Rotary International major donor. We began organizing the shopping spree some 30 years ago by asking school personnel to identify deserving students for participation. Part of the experience was to have students learn to budget money when choosing items to buy; many had never had such an experience. Forms with lists of needed clothing from parents or guardians were collected from those chosen. Our partners in this venture were, first, the Austin Independent School District, which supplied a school bus for transportation to the store for shopping. The second major partner was JC Penney, whose store manager provided dedicated store personnel for assistance during shopping and at the time of checkout. JC Penney also generously provided discount coupons so purchases could be maximized. With tax deductions as a non-profit, our Club was able to parlay the budgeted amount of $3,000 for the event to nearly $6,000 in clothing purchases. Part of the funding to support the shopping spree came from DAP grants and the balance from either cash donations or profits from citrus and candy sales in November.
Each child had $150 allotted for their purchases, and we hosted 20 students a few weeks ago in December. Most of our Club members participate by chaperoning children, and we are assisted by the Anderson High School Spanish Honor Society members and some adults fluent in Spanish. One of the most memorable aspects of this event is that after assembly at the school, students a paired up with their chaperones. All ride the school bus to and from the store. JC Penney also provided a break room with snacks, games, and movies for those who have finished their shopping. Another tradition is to take a group photo before departing.
In summary, the Rotary Cub of Austin is able to brighten the lives of these children each year, and the gratitude from them and their parents or guardians warms our hearts every year. We were blessed to be able to hold the shopping spree this past December and look forward to continuing the tradition in 2022.