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Drive-thru helps students for school return

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, September 1, 2021

By Michael Dashiell

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Above: Rachel Tax, left, and Karen Kremkau hand out backpacks at the Back to School Fair at Helen Haller Elementary on Aug. 28. At left: Heather Baker, art room director at the Sequim Boys & Girls Club, greets attendees and hands out supplies at the 2021 Back to School Fair.
Heather Baker, art room director at the Sequim Boys & Girls Club, greets attendees and hands out supplies at the 2021 Back to School Fair on Aug. 28. Sequim Gazette photo by Michael Dashiell
Heather Baker, art room director at the Sequim Boys & Girls Club, greets attendees and hands out supplies at the 2021 Back to School Fair on Aug. 28. Sequim Gazette photo by Michael Dashiell
Gabriel Allen hands out free lunches to attendees of the 2021 Back to School Fair on Aug. 28. Sequim Gazette photos by Michael Dashiell

As Sequim students gear up for another school year, dozens of volunteers and school staff helped hand out essential gear.

As with last year’s event, the annual Sequim Back to School Fair on Aug. 28 went for a drive-thru model this past weekend, with about 250 vehicles shuttling through the Helen Haller Elementary and Sequim Boys & Girls Club parking lots.

Organizers say they had 610 event registrants plus another 20 or so who didn’t register, varying in school grades from kindergarten through high school.

The event saw the 30-plus volunteers hand out 1,150 breakfast and lunch meals and most of the $10,000 worth of supplies and backpacks, with 15 different vendors handing out school information.

The fair saw nine students get their sports phyicals completed.

This year’s event also brought in $11,320 in donations. The fair was boosted by community donations via supply collection bins, as well as the Aug. 6 Stuff the Bus event at Sequim’s Office Depot.

Fair organizers are still tallying other numbers from Saturday’s event, including the number of COVID vaccines administered.

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