TOP PHOTO: A1 Shipping and Printing is a family business, owned by Bryan and Jessica Patty. They are pictured with their donation of crayons for Campbell County Kindergarten students.

By Charlotte Underwood 

LAFOLLETTE, TN (WLAF) – The Campbell County Teacher Depot has been established to help provide “much needed” classroom supplies for area educators. The first project of the newly established nonprofit will be to provide packs of crayons to every Kindergarten student in the school district.  Around 2,200 packs of crayons will be distributed this week!

According to Campbell County Teacher Depot Director Amber Goins, the local Depot was started after School Board member Jeffrey Miller visited her at the Knoxville Teacher Supply Depot where she was on staff and saw how much it aided educators. Goins was with the Knox County Depot for seven years; five as a board member and two years on staff.

Goins said she wanted to venture out on her own to start the Campbell County Depot.

The mission of the CC Teacher Depot is to “provide free classroom supplies to educators in Campbell County Schools to enhance instruction in the classroom and promote student achievement.”

According to the Depot’s vision statement, it is “committed to working with teachers in the public school system. By providing classroom supplies, we help reduce the financial burden for educators, making a positive impact on the community.”

“This is extremely important, it helps fill in the gaps. Teachers want to provide for their students, but it gets expensive quickly. That’s where the Teacher Depot comes in,” Goins said. 

The first Campbell County Teacher Depot project will be to hand out crayons to each and every kindergarten student in the district. According to Goins, some of the crayons were donated by DeRoyal, some were donated by A1 Shipping and Printing and the majority was purchased through a “large private donation.” These will be distributed to students this week.

“We appreciate their donations so much,” Goins said.

The Campbell County Teacher Depot is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and relies on the “support and generosity of the community.”

“Donations enable us to support teachers with essential classroom supplies,” Goins said. 

The CC Teacher Depot seeks monetary donations as the funds will stretch further with the nonprofit’s ability to buy in bulk and to buy items tax exempt. Local businesses are also encouraged to get involved. 

To donate, visit HERE. For more information, email info@ccteacherdepot.org. (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED – 08/07/2023-6AM)

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