Matthew Burnette, Staff Writer

United Way of South-Central Tennessee’s Stuff the Bus initiative made a return stop to Manchester on July 17 to collect school supplies that will stay in Coffee County and be distributed to students at upcoming WeCARE and Invest in the Best events.

“We don’t want to reinvent the wheel, but we want to add to those programs that are already thriving here, so we’re excited to promote those and support them and let it go to the kids in the school system and to the families that really need it most,” said United Way of South-Central Tennessee Regional Director Ashley Abraham.

Abraham explained that while the main focus of the event is to make sure that students have the supplies that they need, it benefits teachers as well.

“School supplies are expensive, and teachers are a lot of times buying school supplies, so we want to make sure to equip those kids that need it most to go to school with the right equipment and the right supplies that way teachers are not having to buy as much,” she said. “It has been a huge success in all the seven counties, so we’re really excited to see what it brings today.”

The Stuff the Bus event in Manchester has grown every year since it started 14 years ago, and Abraham says she hopes it continues to do so. 

Stuff the Bus is held at the Manchester Chick-fil-A who Abraham notes is a great partner to work with.

“Chick-fil-A has been great to us,” she said. “This is definitely a prime location, and we want people to come out and enjoy some Chick-fil-A and also give to this great cause that way we can support our community, our teachers and families.”

Chick-fil-A Manchester Owner/Operator Chandler England explained that he has a passion for youth sports and education, so hosting the Stuff the Bus is something he enjoys.

“I’m all for kids having the supplies that they need in order for them to go to school and them be successful,” he said. “Ashley’s been a great colleague through the Chamber and different things like that, and she reached out to me and asked if we could do this and I thought it was really important to get this out in the open, and I love having it in our parking lot.”