September Buys, a teacher in Michigan, says she doesn't really like garage sales, and that should tell you just how far she will go to help her students this year.
Buys, an art teacher at Crossroads Middle School in Grand Rapids, said she was feeling helpless about all the uncertainty surrounding the school year-- and decided to channel her frustration into cleaning.
"I just started cleaning out my closet, because that felt better, just to let some things go," she said. "I made a pile, and then I moved onto the girls’ closet, and then I moved onto the toy room, and just this pile grew and grew and grew.”
The idea came to her to hold a garage sale to give away the items. She also reached out to the community on Facebook, asking if others had items they wanted to contribute as well.
Instead of selling what's been collected, Buys asked people to donate art supplies or purchase items off the Amazon wishlist she created to help her students.
“I think it’s really, really important for people to connect with each other and be kind to each other and if you have something extra, why not share it? Things are things… I think what’s more important for me right now is to make sure that my students are cared for and that they have the things they need to feel like they can express what’s going on, they can kind of get some of that stuff out, and the more materials and stuff I have for my students, the better.”
Buys plans to take all the art supplies to create individual 'art kits' for her students.
"We always need help with purchasing supplies – but this year especially, whether the kids are at home or whether they’re in person, they’re not going to be able to share supplies in the same way. I can’t take one package of pencils and put it in the middle of the table for kids to share anymore. So all of the kids are going to need individual supplies.”
Buys isn't sure yet whether she will hold another garage sale.
To learn more, or to buy items off Buys' Amazon wishlist, clickhere.
This story was originally reported by Janice Allen at WXMI.
