Bluffton Community Assistance board discussed its back-to-school supply program and reviewed how persons may donate food items to the food pantry. The discussion took place during the July 16 mid-year board meeting.

Here's how to donate food items
Canned and packaged food items may be taken to St. John’s United Church of Christ weekdays from 9 a.m. to noon. Ring the doorbell on the College Avenue side of the church to deliver food items. Donations may also be delivered on the third Saturday of each month from 10 to 11 a.m. at the parking lot basement entrance to the church.

Food distribution dates
Food distribution dates are the third Saturday of each month from 8 to 11 a.m. and the Wednesday, which follows the third Saturday from 7 to 8 p.m.

The food pantry is open to residents of the Bluffton school district. An application for food assistance is available during the monthly food distribution dates.

Monetary donations accepted
Persons are also encouraged to make monetary contributions. Those may be mailed to:
Bluffton Community Assistance Program
PO Box 52
Bluffton, OH 45817

Back-to-school supplies
Ed Yeager, board president, reported that Southgate Lanes and Stratton Auto Group have teamed up to make certain that all Bluffton students have school supplies when the 2018-19 school year begins in August.

Derek Dukes of Southgate Lanes and Jesse Owsley of Stratton Auto Group head up the drive, which continues until the end of the month.

The Community Assistance Program to qualifying students will distribute supplies in August.

The assistance program distributes the supplies each August prior to the start of the school year. A Facebook event page launch is underway.

Collection buckets for supplies are located at:
• Bluffton Auto Repair
• Southgate Lanes
• First National Bank
• Bluffton Public Library
• Community Markets

Here’s a list of typical school supplies needed:
• Book bags
• Spiral notebooks
• Composition notebooks
• 1-inch three-ring binders
• 1 1/2 –inch three-ring binders
• Erasers
• Rulers
• Pencils (regular and mechanical)
• Red pens
• Highlighters
• Colored pencils
• Box of 24 crayons
• Elmer’s glue
• Pencil box and bags
• Dry erase markers
• 2-pocket folders
• Scissors
• Tab dividers
• Index cards
• Graph paper
• Protractors

Persons or groups interested in making monetary donations contact Owsley at Stratton’s, 419-358-1900, or Dukes at Southgate, 419-358-6966.

Community assistance board
Members of the Bluffton Community Assistance Program board are Ed Yeager, president; Andy Althaus, treasurer; Fred Steiner, secretary; Janette Reineke, Basil Meyer, Lin Rumer and Pat Rodabaugh. Volunteer directors are Jami Crawfis and Connie Maroscher.

The next board meeting is at 7 p.m., Monday, Jan. 14, 2019, at St. John’s United Church of Christ.