SC4K Free Store Re-Opens with Successful Teacher & Partner Shops

SC4K was thrilled to re-open the all-new “SC4K Free Store” in March, after being closed for several months to facilitate our organization’s move to the Community Resource Center. The first shopping event to welcome teachers was our Art-Themed Teacher Shop on Saturday, February 24th. This annual shop is always a favorite! 

Qualified teachers were invited to “shop” for free art and classroom supplies, including markers, glue, clay, paint, yarn, colored pencils, scissors, and more. JoAnn Fabrics has also donated craft and classroom décor items to SC4K for several years, and we are amazed at the creative ways our shoppers plan to use the items.

Sarah Cooper, Art Teacher at Cleveland Heights High School, shared how she looks forward to this day every single year. “It’s always my favorite day, and this is the best one ever! [The Art Themed Shop] gives us so many more opportunities than we would have with our normal working budgets, and we can be so much more creative because all of the supplies here inspire us to do projects we wouldn’t normally think to do!”

The next week, our staff and generous volunteers re-stocked the shelves to prepare the store for our first All-Teacher Shop of the year. The feedback on our new location was all positive, and teachers especially enjoyed our new loading docks, which make it super easy for them to load their vehicles.

Our annual Distribution Partner Meeting + Shop was the next time that we hosted a large shop and the first time many of our Distribution Partners toured the new facility. Over 40 partner representatives attended the meeting and after, they filled their carts to provide support to kids in need! Partners received shoes, clothes, school supplies, and toys to help them carry out their organization’s mission.

During the meeting, SC4K provided important program updates and Tiffany Scruggs, Executive Director of the Community Resource Center, spoke about the services that are available to families through the Greater Cleveland Food Bank and the 14 non-profit organizations that reside within the new facility. Our board members and staff received a refresher on the wrap-around services our Distribution Partners offer at each of their locations during breakout sessions.

SC4K provides regular, weekly teacher shops for teachers from qualified schools. For more information, visit the Teachers section of our website.