With the return to school just around the corner, 80 local students from low-income families were able to shop for their back-to-school clothing Saturday morning at JC Penney — located at 1260 E. Gibson Road — with help from volunteers from several local organizations.

Treasea Hernandez, service coordinator for Woodland’s Salvation Army, said this was her first year attending the nonprofit religious organization’s “Back to School Shopping Event” and noted how “remarkable and rewarding” seeing the event come together was.

“Organizing this whole thing has taken three to four months, numerous hours and a lot of community organizations,” she stressed. “I’m really grateful for everybody that’s participated in helping out.”

Hernandez argued that this event was important because it not only helps kids get ready to go back to school, but it also “shows them that other people care about their education and are willing to do whatever it takes to get them there.”

According to Hernandez, the Salvation Army spearheaded the program’s organization and spent roughly $15,000 to hold this year’s shopping spree.

Most of this money — about $7,000 — was raised during the Salvation Army’s Bell Ringing Season, which she noted starts in November and will start calling people in October for volunteer help.

Other donations and funding for the spree came from the Woodland Kiwanis Club, the public and a joint Great Clips and Channel 10 Drive.

“We have been very honored to have a real support group,” she added. “These organizations are remarkable and our community doesn’t really know how fortunate we are to be able to provide this type of service for our children. Just to see all this happen is remarkable.”

To stay up to date with Woodland’s Salvation Army, follow their Facebook page at facebook.com/SalvationArmyWoodlandCa.

Shopper registration began at 8 a.m. and volunteers started chaperoning kids around the store at 9 a.m.

Kyron Lloyd is a father from Winters who brought three of his children — all of whom are enrolled in the Woodland Joint Unified School District — to the event to participate in the shopping spree. He applauded the organizers for providing this support for local parents.

“It’s excellent for the kids and the parents too because it takes a load off our back,” he emphasized. “We gotta worry about bills and other things like that, so anything helps.”

Lloyd also assured that he would take his kids to get their eyes checked at the Lions Club Vision Van, which ensured all kids got their annual eye exams at no cost to parents.

Frank Dunn, a representative for Lions Club, said that the vision van is a great way for kids to get their eyes checked.

“People come in at no charge to get their eyes checked for three or four different things and then get referenced to a local optometrist in their town,” he explained. “It’s an opportunity for us to get out in the public and do a service.”

The club used to offer haircuts provided by Great Clips prior to the pandemic, but they have not been able to bring them back to the event. Organizers hope to bring them back in the near future.

Additionally, Woodland Kiwanis Club volunteers prepared breakfast for kids and their families and provided significant funding for the shopping spree and backpacks.

“At the beginning, we started out with about $2,500 and then we decided that the $100 for the kids is not enough,” Steve Barzo, president for the club, stressed. “So, we chipped in extra money to make every kid eligible for $125.”

Last year was the first time the club upped the shopping spree to $125 from $100 and it continued that trend this year.

The club now pays the Salvation Army $3,500 a year for the shopping spree and another $1,000 for purchasing some of the backpacks.

“So about $4,500 a year we contribute to this event and then we do the cooking, so it’s great to help the kids,” Barzo emphasized. “Just to be able to help out the kids is a good feeling.”

Furthermore, one thing that many chaperones have had to dissuade kids from in past years is purchasing expensive shoes that take up most of their money.

Stephanie Wilson, a Woodland School Resource Officer who has chaperoned for the event several times, addressed this issue for the first time by helping purchase shoes for the students ahead of time.

“I’ve done the shopping spree with the kids and every year it seems like the shoes eat up most of their budget,” she highlighted. “Then they only have enough money to maybe get some socks, underwear and maybe one outfit.”

The Woodland Police Department had leftover funds from donations made for the department’s 2022 Fill the Trunk event, so Wilson took that money and purchased shoes from a local store.

“I thought the best way to spend the money is to buy them some shoes… so that it doesn’t eat up into their budget and they can get three outfits instead of just one,” Wilson remarked. “We went and bought all the shoes from SorD down on Main Street and we were able to buy all the shoes for them.”

The police department got the shoe sizes from the 80 students ahead of time and purchased black shoes for boys and white shoes for girls, all of which were either Vans or DC brands.

“We just had leftover funds and I wanted to make sure that we use the community’s donations for something significant like this,” she added.