Tucked away in the Mill City neighborhood in South Dallas is the Juanita J. Craft Recreation Center, where staff and volunteers spent Thursday afternoon preparing for their annual back-to-school fair on Saturday.
“It's been a while since something like this of this magnitude has happened,” said Jadon Singleton, program specialist at the recreation center.
Singleton, who has been visiting the center since he was a teen, said calls inquiring about the fair have been steady.
He and others have been working for weeks to organize the community back to school celebration aimed at filling a gap in resources — many of its nonprofit partners are facing federal cuts to programs that help families. Coupled with high costs of groceries and housing, families are searching for ways to help with costs that come with the beginning of the school year.
“We haven't distributed anything yet, but we've already gotten a lot of thank yous from parents and things like that,” Singleton said.
So far, 2,000 families have registered for the event that will give away free supplies, haircuts, health screenings and other resources. He said no one will be turned away, even if they didn’t’ register.
Keldrick McKinney, community programs director for the rec center, said it’s about more than getting supplies into students’ hands.
“The resources are lacking right now, but that does not mean that we can't be put in the position possible to educate our youth and be in the best position possible to succeed,” McKinney said.
Portia Pruitt, who lives in the area, brings her four children to the recreation center, where they participate in sports and the after-school program.
She said events like these are a lifeline for families facing financial strain as they prepare to send their children back to school.
“You have one kid, you might do well, but when you have four children, it is an anxiety that, you know, you always think every year I'm going to do it earlier and earlier, and I am going out there getting things done earlier,” Pruitt said.
She said not only will the back-to-school event provide much needed relief for parents and caregivers trying to check things off a checklist, but they can also get to fellowship with others.
“I even had one of the barbers call, to make sure that I was prepped for it, to make sure the boys' hair was washed and everything, so I'm like they're already thinking about us,” she said. “I'm excited about getting that done.”
In addition to the free school supplies, food, haircuts, physicals and games, there will be health screenings for adults and information about the health clinic that is connected to the recreation center.
Singleton said this was just one way of giving back to the community, where parents are thankful and willing to give their time to help the recreation center.
“If I had to sum it up in one word, I'd just say family,” he said.
