As the new school year is set to begin, two sisters from Atlanta have made it their mission to help refugee children that are unable to afford school supplies.
Lily Babcock, 17, and her sister Evie Babcock, 14, baked and campaigned to help raise money for backpacks and other supplies.
The inspiration to give back to the local refugee families came after Lily worked at a summer camp with refugee children.
“I’ve always loved going back to school with like, fancy pencils. It’s really helped me love learning,” Lilly told 11 Alive. “I realized if we could help get school supplies for all of these children, that it could help them have that same love for learning and happiness that I’ve experiences.”
Through their campaign, the two raised over $4,000 for approximately 240 stuffed backpacks.
The stuffed backpacks will be distributed with the help of New American Pathways, to refugee children across the Atlanta region. Chief Advancement Officer Nancy Gaddy explained that often, the families they serve don’t have access to these supplies, or money to help out.
“Some are victims of health crises or natural disasters. The last thing you want a parent to be doing is scrambling just to get a book bag and paper and supplies.”
With the help of Lilly and Evie, the backpacks that are stuffed have been sent off to the families before classes begin.
