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Local Businesses Collect Nearly 200,000 School Supplies for 'Supply Surge' Donation Drive
[September 10, 2019]

Local Businesses Collect Nearly 200,000 School Supplies for 'Supply Surge' Donation Drive


More than 30 local businesses recently came together as part of PEMCO Mutual Insurance's second-annual "Supply Surge" school supply drive. Together, donors and participating organizations collected more than 195,000 individual school supplies for homeless and underserved youth in the Puget Sound region.

The donations collected by 34 participating organizations headquartered around PEMCO's South Lake Union neighborhood and beyond nearly doubled the number of supplies donated during PEMCO's inaugural Supply Surge last year. As a result, essential school supplies - from backpacks to pencils, composition notebooks to calculators - that make a significant difference in a child's education will reach more than 8,700 students who attend Seattle Public Schools.

"We are inspired by the businesses and individuals that rallied behind this year's Supply Surge," said PEMCO CEO Stan McNaughton. "When we fuse our strengths to do more, for more, together we can help remove barriers that keep underserved students from thriving at school."

According to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, nearly one student in every classroom in Washington will experience homelessness. As part of Supply Surge, PEMCO partnered with Seattle Public Schools' McKinney-Vento Program, which aims to support schools that have high opulations of low-income families and students experiencing homelessness, to identify 10 Seattle-area middle schools and high schools that will each receive a portion of the donated supplies.



Many of the contributing businesses, representing organizations of all sizes across a range of industries, chose to participate because of Supply Surge's close alignment with their own values and sense of accountability to the community.

"On behalf of WeWork's South Lake Union location, I'm so glad we could take part in PEMCO's Supply Surge this year. As an organization, it's important to us to find ways to make a difference in our communities, and a school supply drive for Seattle students was an exciting way for our team to give back," said Sally-Anne Greenwood, community lead of operations at WeWork. "We hope our efforts, along with the amazing contributions from other community partners, will go a long way in making a difference for students in need."


To culminate this year's Supply Surge, PEMCO delivered donations to the 10 Seattle schools on September 6 and 10, 2019.

For more information on PEMCO's Supply Surge, visit pemco.com/supply-surge.

About PEMCO Insurance

PEMCO Insurance is the Defender of Your Northwest, providing auto, home, renters and boat coverage. We are consistently recognized for outstanding service, employee expertise and social impact. Our Mutual Good programs raise the achievement levels for youth in education; build stronger, greener environments; and increase safety at home, on the road and at play. Our mission: Free our communities to worry less and live more. To learn more, visit www.pemco.com.


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