Bag It Forward with Elmer’s #BagItForward

If you’ve been a Wisconsin Mommy reader for a while, you know that Elmer’s is one of my favorite companies to work with.  It’s not just that I grew up on and truly love their products, it’s also that they give back in so many ways and also help me to give back as well.  LJ and I were really looking forward to participating in Elmer’s Bag It Forward program again this year – we both got so much out of helping the victims of last year’s tornado in Eagle, WI.


This year, we participated in Bag It Forward with a little bit of a twist – we were given the opportunity to shop for a bag of supplies for a teacher. (Think of a Halloween boo bag, but with a school supply twist.)  Right away, LJ and I knew who we would be shopping for!  Between my own years as an elementary teacher and the time I spent volunteering in LJ’s class last year, I know firsthand how fast the supplies run out and how many are supplied by the classroom teacher.  Buying a gluestick here and there may not seem like much to you or I, but multiply it times twenty or more kids in a class and do it every week and you’d be horrified at how fast it adds up.  Most teachers don’t say a word, they just do what needs to be done and buy what needs to be bought for the kids to have the best school experience possible.


I was thrilled to team up with Elmer’s to help one teacher have a few extra supplies this year!  LJ and I thumbed through the Sunday flyers, grabbed a supply list for the school we were shopping for, and checked out the Back to School sales that were already out there.

Look at the great deals at Walmart!!

We headed out to go shopping and LJ helped me decide what to get:

Classrooms are always in need of crayons, markers, and pencils.

And gluesticks – LOTS of gluesticks!

And Elmer’s School glue. The school we are shopping for is brand specific – they only use Elmer’s!

LJ reminded me that his class used a lot of Ziploc bags last year.

It might be summer now, but those cold germs are just lurking around the corner.

Elementary classrooms need LOTS of tissues!

We think we did pretty well!

Here’s our haul waiting to be bagged up and delivered.

And here’s the cute poem and “You’ve Been Bagged!” note that goes along with it.

We were all excited to deliver our package in secret.  We were going to hang it on the classroom doorknob of our selected teacher.  We drove over to the school, our hearts pounding, and…


found it locked up tight as a drum.


Drats!


I’m not sure if we just caught them during a meeting or if they’ve finally taken some very well-deserved vacation time.  I know administration and the support staff have been working hard all summer, so hopefully we will catch them when the school is open before the teachers come back to begin setting up their classrooms!


Wondering how you can help?  There’s LOTS of ways!!


* Go over to www.BagItForward.org and learn more about buying and donating school supplies.  It can be to a family, a student, or a teacher – anyone who needs a little help.  You can also upload your pictures to the Bag It Forward website!


* Go to the Elmer’s Facebook page and click on the “like” button.  From now until Sept. 1, for each “like” on the Elmer’s Facebook page the company will donate a product to the Foundation’s national network of free stores, where teachers from disadvantaged schools can “shop” for free for school supplies. Products to be donated include a variety of glues, foam board, project supplies and pencil sharpeners. If you already like the page, they’ll make a contribution on your behalf, but you can donate again by watching a video on the Elmer’s Kids In Need Facebook tab and sharing it with your friends and family.


* And just to sweeten the deal, Elmer’s is a Upromise partner, so for every Elmer’s or Krazy Glue product you purchase with your Upromise-registered card, you are contributing to your Upromise account!  (You can get more info on this at  http://www.elmers.com/about/special-offers.)


So how are YOU going to Bag It Forward???

This project has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Elmer’s #BagItForward #collectivebias All opinions expressed are my own – as always.