24th annual Big Backpack event in Fort Myers

It’s that time of year again.

Back to school is just around the corner, and one Southwest Florida non-profit had an event at the perfect time.

The Multicultural Centre held its annual Big Backpack event Sunday.

The new school year brings excitement for many, but for some it brings challenges.

Paying for back-to-school supplies gets expensive, so the Multicultural Centre started the big backpack event over two decades ago.

Leonardo Garcia is the president and founder of the Big Backpack event. He also helped found the Multicultural Centre.

“I never thought it will grow to be a very important event,” Garcia said, “and as I say to everyone, the best and smartest investment that we can make is in the children, so it’s nice to see how many kids how many adults come to volunteer.”

Volunteers worked hard to prepare and hand out all of the goodies at the giveaway to ensure every kid in our community has the opportunity to start school on the right foot with the supplies they need to succeed.

Even kid volunteers like Orlando Hernandez.

“I’ve been helping volunteer this entire process, but I like giving away, like seeing the smiles on the peoples’ faces whenever we do it. It’s all a part of the fun,” Hernandez said.

The first 2,000 kids at the event got new backpacks, school supplies and even groceries.

At the end of the day, setting your kids up for success and getting them excited for school is the most important part of back-to-school prep.