BANGOR – Penquis C.A.P., Inc. (Penquis)’s We’ve Got Your Back program will receive over 500 backpacks from Brewer 13-year-old Ava Burke on Aug. 12 starting at 11 a.m. Burke has been collecting backpacks for half of her life to support local school-aged children. Her goal is to provide high-quality backpacks to other students so they can return to school with the tools and confidence they need. Burke has officially donated over 1,000 backpacks since she started helping Penquis’ We’ve Got Your Back program when she was just 6 years old.
This year Burke set a record-breaking goal of collecting 500 backpacks to donate. As the backpacks came in through donations from family, friends, civic organizations, and many businesses, she quickly ran out of space in her home to store them. Thankfully, a storage unit at Showcase Self Storage in Brewer was donated to store the backpacks until they were ready to be brought to Penquis.
On Aug. 12 Burke will collect the backpacks from the storage unit at Showcase Storage Unit in Brewer (14 Schilling Drive) starting at 11 a.m. and deliver them to Penquis (262 Harlow Street in Bangor).
“It is inspiring to see Ava’s commitment to this project over the years. Her compassion for others comes through and the care she takes to see that each backpack is high-quality matters tremendously,” says Penquis Community Relations Manager Renae Muscatell. “We want all kids to have every advantage to succeed at school. Ava’s efforts go a long way to support school-aged children in our area.”
We’ve Got Your Back, which is a partnership with Penquis and Blueberry Broadcasting, is serving 1,200 children throughout Penobscot, Piscataquis, and Knox counties. This year, the number of children on the waiting list is higher than usual, but with Burke’s hard work and the generosity of others, Penquis hopes to serve all of those on the waiting list as well. People can support the program at www.penquis.org or text to give at givebackpacks @44321.
Penquis is a nonprofit organization incorporated in 1967 to assist individuals and families in preventing, reducing, or eliminating poverty in their lives and, through partnerships, to engage the community in addressing economic and social needs. Through its programs and subsidiaries, Penquis affects all of Maine’s 16 counties, but primarily individuals in Penobscot, Piscataquis, and Knox counties.
