Kids collect school supplies for flood victims near South Charleston

  • 2016-07-21
A number of children in West Virginia have decided to take action and help out those affected by the floods in the state.

Four-year-old Zane Knowlton was at first confused about the impact the floods had on local families, but quickly decided to do something to help. Instead of getting presents for his birthday on July 3, he asked his parents to donate to children who had lost all their toys.

His mother, Brooke Knowlton, wrote about Zane's wish on the Facebook event page for his birthday. In response, the family was able to collect nearly 50 Backpacks from residents and local businesses.

Zane is not the only child in the South Charleston area who has been inspired to help out. Reagan Artis, age 10, and Journey Hoehn, age 5, are also collecting school supplies and backpacks for children who lost everything in the flood.

Often, donation drives use flyer printing to spread the word about collection times and sites. Heather Hoehn, Journey's mom, has created a Facebook page to get the word out about the collection, dubbed the ‘WV Backpack Brigade’.

The response to the backpack drive has been positive. People from across the US have reached out to the Hoehns to find out how they can help. The largest donation the girls have received so far came from students at Challenge Preparatory Charter School in Far Rockaway, NY, which was hit hard by Superstorm Sandy in 2012.

The girls are collecting backpacks until August 1.

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