Some 700 Cape Coral students who expected to go back to school without a backpack can look forward to getting one for free — and the backpacks will contain school supplies.
Jim Jeffers Park, located at 2810 S.W. Third Lane, may not have an August Santa Claus on hand, but his elves will be there from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday. They are the members of Cape Christian Fellowship.
They donated the back-to-school presents, and Florida Gulf Bank also contributed to the project.
“Last night, we had 100 people come to stuff the backpacks with the school supplies,” the Rev. Dennis Gingerich, founding pastor of Cape Christian Fellowship, said Wednesday.
The church is responsible for the distribution in Cape Coral.
There will also be a block party with carnival-style games, slides, free food, inflatable games, music, cotton candy and more.
BJ’s Warehouse and Starbucks have donated the food and other supplies.
“This event is a part of SWFL Project Backpack, a combined effort of four churches in Southwest Florida giving away thousands of backpacks,” Gingerich said.
This is the first time Cape Christian Fellowship has participated. This has been done two previous years in Fort Myers and last year in Estero.
“We are really excited to be part of it because there is a need,” Gingerich said. “We saw the need, and we provided volunteers to help families get notebooks, pencils, scissors and much more.”
Anyone can sponsor a child by donating $20 per backpack to a participating church, or a one-time donation will help cover the costs of the parties.
Volunteers can also contact one of the churches and everyone is invited to bring children in need, according to Gingerich.
The other block parties will be at:
— Estero Community Park, 9200 Corkscrew Palms Blvd.
— Palmetto Courts Park, 3501 Dale St., Fort Myers
Cape Christian Fellowship is located at 2110 S. Chiquita Blvd., and the telephone number is 772-5683.
Other churches involved are:
— Next Level Church, 6300 Techster Blvd., Suite 2, Fort Myers, 274-3755
— Summit Church of Estero, 21105 Design Park Lane, 947-7070
— Summit Church of Naples, 1515 Pine Ridge Road, 598-5148