Saturday was the 21st annual Mary Nelson Back to School Giveaway in Syracuse.

A community staple, the event is run by Mary Nelson of the Mary Nelson Youth Center and is intended to benefit youth in the area whose families may not be able to afford back to school supplies.

What You Need To Know

  • The Mary Nelson Back to School Giveaway is in its 21st year, and is run by Mary Nelson of the Mary Nelson Youth Center

  • The event included the backpack and supply giveaway, as well as a barbecue and vendors

  • Students and their families were able to get school supplies, back to school clothes, household items and groceries for free

The giveaway enables families with children to load up on school supplies, back to school clothes and household items, all for free.

"I went back to school shopping, I have a lot of stuff in my bag and it’s very heavy and I think I might fall backwards,” said second grader Kamyah Webb. “I got rulers, I have some blue markers, pencils, colored pencils [and] I have scissors.”

She says going back to school is one of her favorite times of the year.

“Back to school is like the most fun thing,” Webb said.

But it can also be a stressful time for many families.

Kamyah came with her cousin Antwann. He says for families like his, the giveaway provides relief and ensures that kids have what they need.

"It lets a lot of people have things they can’t normally get because of certain issues they might have,” he said. “It’s a stressful time, sometimes people don’t have enough money to get things they might need.“

Kayla Johnson is a volunteer. She says that’s the whole idea behind the event.

“It’s financial,” Johnson said. “It’s going to be a financial burden. So at this time anything will help a family. So this is definitely very important to the people in the community. And thank you to Mary Nelson for always giving this event because it’s definitely needed.”

Nelson has been doing the giveaway for 21 years. She opened the event by encouraging parents to let the kids lead the way.

“Not what you want them to have, let them pick out what they want. Pretend like they’re shopping with you in a store,” she told the crowd.

 And Kamyah had just one thing to say to Ms. Nelson.

“Thank you because if it weren’t for you we wouldn’t be able to be coming back to school with all this stuff that we got,” she said.

Prior to kicking things off, Mary Nelson and the annual event were recognized by both the city of Syracuse as well as Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office for the role they play in helping the community.