York County volunteers host school sendoff event with free backpacks
Volunteers of America’s Northeast branch hosted a free backpack and school supply giveaway Friday afternoon at Rotary Park in Biddeford, drawing dozens of families seeking help as the new school year approaches.
The event, organized under the nonprofit’s Uplifting Families Together initiative, distributed backpacks filled with pens, notebooks, markers and other classroom essentials. It also featured lawn games, bubbles and free ice cream, creating a festive atmosphere that organizers described as a "summer sendoff" for students heading back to class. The gathering was open to any Maine family in need of supplies, regardless of circumstance.
The Uplifting Families Together project launched in June 2025 with a grant from the federal Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. The program provides wraparound support for families with incarcerated loved ones, including reunification services, parenting classes and resource navigation, primarily connected to the York County Jail.
Tina Kenney, senior parent resource navigator for the program, said the backpack giveaway reflects the broader network of services the project offers. Madison Burke, the project's evaluation partner through the Southern Maine Catherine Cutler Institute, said the goal was "bringing community members together, providing them with the resources they need to succeed in school and beyond."
Since its founding, the program has enrolled 106 people in parent education courses or other services at York County Jail, guided 26 people through reintegration after their release, reunited six families and helped 11 others establish regular family visits, according to Kenney.
Burke noted that data and prior research show children with incarcerated parents often face poorer school attendance and grades. "One of the big things that we were hoping to address is not just to meet people and bring people together, but also to help kids stay in school and be excited about school," she said.
Among the attendees was Megan Vieira and her 14-year-old son Jace LaPointe, who begins high school next week. Vieira said her family has struggled since moving to Biddeford six months ago.
"It's just been really hard for us. (Jace's) father is incarcerated," Vieira said. "We're just not doing too good right now, so this event really helped us out today because I wasn't going to be able to have anything for him to start school."
Calling the event "a blessing," Vieira smiled as she spun a Hula-Hoop with her daughter while Jace, who has childhood apraxia of speech, played with bubbles nearby. After exploring his new navy blue backpack, Jace said he was most looking forward to using the notebook inside for his favorite subject, history.
Less than an hour into the event, volunteers had already distributed a few dozen backpacks. Some families had registered in advance, while others learned about it online.
John Lombard traveled from Lewiston with his wife, sister-in-law and several nieces and nephews. His family, he said, is homeless. After a contentious school budget year in Lewiston, he said his family lost some resources that had supported his children's schooling.
"I'm glad that they're actually here, because in Lewiston, I can't just go out and buy things," Lombard said. He expressed appreciation that programs like Uplifting Families Together can help guide children onto the right path, "even with the smallest of acts — like giving away free backpacks."
Kenney and her team use data gathered from the program's courses and services to identify areas of greatest need, and Burke said the backpack event is one example of how the project responds to those needs. The rising cost of school supplies, organizers noted, compounds financial strain for many families, including those without incarcerated relatives.
As Friday's event continued, Rory Ives and other volunteers organized stacks of remaining backpacks, ensuring that any family who arrived would leave prepared for the first day of school.
