Everything is new with the tags still on and still in the box. The zippers work. It’s Stuff the Bus.
This annual event from United Way Mat-Su gives brand-new backpacks and school supplies to Mat-Su students. All for free.
Stuff the Bus is at Amazing Grace Academy on Inner Springer Loop in Palmer on Tuesday, July 28, from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
United Way Mat-Su Development and Outreach Director Michele Harmeling has run Stuff the Bus for nine years.
Harmeling notes that this is the first time some kids have owned something that wasn’t a hand-me-down. The excitement, she said, can be felt the minute the doors open.
“They’re just floored,” she said, “when they see a brand-new backpack still in a package.”
Advance registration is required this year. Families can register online at UnitedWayMatsu.org/matsustuffthebus or through the United Way Mat-Su event page on Facebook.
Backpacks and supplies are limited to K-12 students registered in Mat-Su School District neighborhood and charter schools. Families must show proof of enrollment for each student.
Homeschool families are not eligible for backpacks or supplies. They are welcome to participate in the resources and activities. Harmeling said homeschool families should ask their advisors or homeschool hub about their allotment.
About 750 students participated last year. Harmeling has seen as many as 1,500 students in other years. She expects between 500-700 students this year.
The day feels like a neighborhood school open house according to Harmeling. Each kid picks a backpack. Then they walk table to table filling it with supplies.
Thrive Mat-Su and Youth360 volunteers provide a playground and games. Kids Kupboard provides a hot dog lunch.
About 15 nonprofits and agencies offer everything from haircuts to after-school programs. Public Health is on hand. The Palmer Lions Club offers vision screenings.
A supply list is built from the classroom lists from across the district in elementary and secondary schools. These supplies are on hand for the students.
They would cost a family about $80 for an elementary student, and over $110 for the older students if purchased at Fred Meyer.
For a family with three kids, that’s about $300. That’s before anything else. Before shoes. Before student activity fees.
Harmeling said the need isn’t new. But costs today make it harder. What counted as financially stable a few years ago often doesn’t count anymore.
The cost of living in the Mat-Su Borough runs 11 percent above the national average, according to BestPlaces.net. Our families are feeling that gap more each year.
Harmeling said by helping cover the cost of school supplies, United Way Mat-Su frees up money families can spend on things like groceries or gas.
Parents have told Harmeling that they couldn’t afford the supplies on their own. Stuff the Bus made the difference.
Parents also say that the best part is the free day at a school carnival with their kids.
Stuff the Bus has become less about the items, and more about joy and community.
Because a backpack, Harmeling said, is never just a backpack.
Registration is open now at UnitedWayMatsu.org/matsustuffthebus or on the United Way Mat-Su Facebook event page.
Volunteers are still needed. To register as a volunteer, visit unitedwaymatsu.org/matsustuffthebus.
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That’s it for today and the news on Page Two on Friday July 17, 2026.
Image provided by United Way Mat-Su Stuff the Bus Facebook Event Page.