Stuff The Bus Event Collects School Supplies for Saline Students

The fifth annual Stuff the Bus event kicked off Saline Summerfest on Friday, with volunteers turning out to collect donations throughout the community. Steadfast Chiropractic owners Kelsey and Andrew Schneider have partnered with Paul Hynek to organize this event each year. This yearly event accepts donations from businesses and neighborhood collection sites and disburses the items to families in need.

“This is Stuff the Bus’s fifth year,” Paul Hynek said. “We started out at Steadfast Chiropractic as a Back to School event that they did in their parking lot, and a couple of years later, we joined forces.”

“The collection is going very well,” he said. “Saline Social Services will disburse items on Saturday, the 16th, from 11am to noon at Liberty School. The public is welcome. Anyone in need of supplies can come.”

Kelsey Schneider reflected on how the event has evolved in recent years, from its origin as a Back to School fair to its current collaborative effort among Saline’s organizations.

“We used to have vendors out in the parking lot, and it was a separate drive. Then when COVID hit, we went to all monetary donations,” she said. “After Covid, Paul had the idea for Stuff the Bus. Saline Social Services connected us, and we were able to make it the Stuff the Bus event instead.”

Many local businesses help to sponsor the event, providing funds for signs, the bus and driver. The bus makes a dozen stops, collecting school supplies such as crayons and markers, pencils and paper, rulers and glue sticks, as well as backpacks. They also collect items for classrooms, such as disinfecting wipes and tissues.

“I help with all the businesses out in the community, making sure that we have boxes out there and that the word gets out, and Paul does all the neighborhoods. It’s turned into such a bigger, better event since we can reach more people.”

Volunteers assembled at Liberty School on Friday morning, ready to board the bus that would travel to various collection sites in Saline’s neighborhoods. Miss Saline pageant contestants came to help with the process. Molly Coy and Kimberly Bryant, co-directors of the pageant, helped direct the young ladies to their various assigned tasks.

“I’m super excited because I’m wearing my hat as co-director with Kimberly Bryant,” Molly Coy said. “We have our Miss Saline contestants that are going to be helping with Stuff the Bus, hopping on the bus and also sorting all day long. We have them in two groups, a morning group and an afternoon group. They’ve been collecting and they’re here to support today. Such wonderful ladies giving back to the community, and for such a great cause.”

Saline Area Schools new superintendent, Dr. Rachel Kowalski, was on hand to greet volunteers.

“I am new to the community, and excited to participate in my first Stuff the Bus,” Kowalski said. “We’ve got a really fun weekend ahead with Summerfest. And these young ladies are so impressive with what they’ve done. I’m hopeful that they will have lots of things to sort, and we will get them out to teachers and in the classrooms where they need to be with kids.”

Schneider is thankful for all of the community support, from Saline Area Social Services and Saline Summerfest to Saline Area Schools and Community Education.

“I know when we started doing this, it was just something that we always wanted to do, to give back to the community that Andrew grew up in. I’m a social worker by trade, so I always love giving back and helping people that are in need. Saline Social Services is such an amazing organization to help with, that I believe that bringing the community together for a bigger project than just ourselves is really important. To give back to people in need and to help lift up everybody in the community, so that everybody can have new school supplies and feel really good starting that first day of school and give back to the kids that deserve it.”

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