MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG) — Families get some much-needed help with school supplies as inflation continues to pose a challenge. A Mobile church is putting the focus on bringing people together. It’s always a big crowd for Pathway Church’s annual backpack giveaway. Church members were giving away roughly 1000 backpacks between Sunday services. Each was filled with school supplies.

“And this is an opportunity for us to share, especially at school time. Kids are going back. Parents are having to buy uniforms and more clothes. I’m telling you, I’ve got three teenagers and they don’t even get a chance to wear out their shoes or wear out their clothes. And, you know, prices are a little bit higher. So it’s an opportunity for us to come in alongside parents and say, thank you all,” said Lead Pastor Travis Johnson. This annual event is another way this church lives its mission in the community.

“This is just following the example of Christ, you know, putting love on our neighbors. It’s also a fulfillment of the great commandment, which is Jesus was asked, What’s the greatest commandment? He said to love the Lord, your God with all your heart, all your mind, all your soul, all your strength, and love your neighbor as yourself,” said Pastor Johnson. Parents face even more challenges —with prices up more than 20 percent for back-to-school supplies over the last two years. The tax and audit service Deloitte reports back-to-school spending will likely be down for the first time in years in 2023. Parents say they’re happy to get some help.

“If you go in any local store to buy groceries or your kids’ uniforms, school supplies, you realize that the cost of everything is kind of going up a lot. So I feel like the church tries to offset that for our community as much as we can,” said parent Kara Holifield. In addition to the school supplies, the church also offered haircuts for students to help get the school year started right.

“It’s nice to know that I can come here and through God, all my needs are already supplied and everything’s already there,” said parent Crystal Peoples.