SYRACUSE, N.Y. (June 14, 2016) – The Auxiliary of St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center will be filling over 800 backpacks with donated school supplies as part of its annual “Operation Backpack for Our Kids” Program, which fills and distributes backpacks full of school supplies to St. Joseph’s pediatric outpatients. Thousands of notebooks, paper, pens, pencils, rulers, tissues, folders and crayons have been donated by St. Joe’s employees and Auxiliary members.
This is the 12th year of the Auxiliary’s Backpack Program, and this is a new record number of backpacks that are able to be filled through this initiative! Hundreds of elementary students will gather at St. Joseph’s Primary Care Centers over the summer to pick out their new backpacks for the coming school year.
The Auxiliary is an organization of approximately 600 men and women dedicated to serving the needs of St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center. Dating all the way back to the establishment of the hospital, the group currently has more than 30 committees and service projects and is directed by a volunteer board.
The Auxiliary has introduced many services to St. Joseph’s over the years including the coffee bar, shopping cart, the gift shop, baby photo service, television/telephone rental, and vending machines. The Auxiliary works closely with the hospital’s Volunteer Office, and many Auxiliary members serve as hospital volunteers.
