300 kids enjoy Altrusa-organized shopping spree
Six-year-old Colby Mitchell tried on a pair of skate shoes at Payless Shoe Source at about 7 a.m. Saturday morning, well before the store is usually open.
“What do you think about these ones?” asked Ashley Brown, 27, of Corvallis.
“I like them,” Mitchell said, smiling.
There was plenty to smile about on Saturday as 300 students in need got back-to-school shopping sprees at Heritage Mall during KidzShop, an annual event organized by Altrusa International of Albany.
Each student got $100 to buy clothes, a backpack filled with school supplies, a knapsack with snacks, membership to the Boys & Girls Club of Albany and more.
The event has been held in some form since the late 1990s and has steadily grown every year.
Old Navy, Sears, and MasterCuts were other Heritage Mall businesses that helped in the event and opened up the mall early on Saturday.
Sears sales clerk Taylor Arthur said she looks forward to KidzShop every year.
“You get to see all the smiles on the kids’ faces and see them pick out things,” she said.
After buying shoes and socks, Mitchell and Brown — a Chase bank worker volunteering to chaperone the youth and make sure he was on budget — were off to Old Navy for jeans and T-shirts.
Mitchell’s mom, Angelina Mitchell, said KidzShop would be a tremendous help for her family as she was facing medical bills from back problems. Her daughter McKenzie Wallace also was taking part in the event.
Altrusa fundraises all year for KidzShop, which costs the organization more than $30,000, said Chrystal Hart, vice president of Altrusa International of Albany.
Half of that funding this year came from Altrusa’s LaDolce Vita dinner in the spring. Spirit Mountain also donated $4,000.
And the local philanthropic group also has smaller events to raise money as well, such as an upcoming Zumba party on Aug. 18 at CJ’s Dance Studio.
Several businesses chip in for KidzShop by having employees volunteer or donating materials. Coastal Farm & Ranch Supply, for example, provided backpacks for the event.
The participating businesses at Heritage Mall also offered steep discounts (or in the case of MasterCuts, free haircuts) to make sure students could stretch their dollars, Hart said.
