By Dianne Anderson

After paying rent, keeping food in the fridge and micro-budgeting, next comes the soaring utility bills after endless days of scorching heat.

By then, school shopping is usually the last thing on the list. For families fortunate enough to have a home, even smaller supplies and a few new clothes can be out of reach.

At Family Promise of Riverside, Executive Director Claire Jefferson-Glipa said families are reaching the end of their budgets, even while working one or two jobs.

“No one’s really talking about the effect of homelessness on children, but the last two years in a row, HUD has shown an exponential increase in family homelessness,” Jefferson‑Glipa said.

That trend is also reflected in local schools.  According to the California Department of Education’s 2024-25 Homeless Student Enrollment by Dwelling Type report, Riverside County reported 17,041 homeless students, while San Bernardino County reported 26,071, more than 43,000 children across the Inland Empire.

Like many other nonprofits, she said Family Promise is struggling to keep up with growing demand since the safety net has been ripped away. Recent cuts to food assistance, essential support and child care programs are making it harder for families to stabilize once they find housing.

“There are a lot of child care vouchers that are no longer going to be valid because of the current Administration. So, then how does a parent of toddlers go to work, take away their food support, take away their child care support? What is someone supposed to do?” she said.

Across California and the Inland Empire, local organizations and nonprofits are easing the strain with back-to-school campaigns, drives and resource fairs to distribute tens of thousands of backpacks this summer.

Over the next two weeks, families can get the help they need.

“Our 4th Annual Backpack Giveaway is more than a charitable event; it is an opportunity to connect families with resources, build trust, reduce financial hardship, and demonstrate that Children and Family Services is invested in every child’s success,” said Jeany Glasgow, director of San Bernardino County Children and Family Services.

On Saturday, July 25, Children and Family Services hosts its CFS Backpack Giveaway and Resource Fair from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at San Bernardino High School, located at 1850 N. E Street. Onsite resources will include WIC, South Coast Community Services, CFS Community Engagement, Public Health’s Smile SBC program, Victor Valley College Outreach and the San Bernardino County Library

There, the county will distribute free, filled backpacks to the first 500 children at each of three events, with one backpack per child. The community is invited out to a fun day fair with interactive games, face painting, a community resource vendor fair, giveaways, food and drinks, music and dancing.

Another county giveaway will be held Saturday, August 1 at Victor Valley High School, 16500 Mojave Dr., Victorville, which runs from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

For those who may have missed those local giveaways, other Inland Empire organizations are also offering resources, free backpacks, and school-supply giveaways, along with help with benefits applications. Families should show up early.

On Saturday, July 25, the Inland Empire Lowrider Alliance will host its 15th Annual Backpack Drive and Resource Fair at San Manuel Stadium from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Free backpacks and school supplies will be distributed starting at 2:00 p.m.

While community groups are stepping up with backpacks and supplies, local leaders say the underlying financial pressures facing families are mounting.

Earlier this month, Rep. Pete Aguilar held a press conference at the Family Service Association of Redlands to mark one year since Donald Trump and congressional Republicans passed what he called the “Big Ugly Bill,” which he said included the largest funding cut to food assistance programs in U.S. history.

More than 300,000 Californians have lost CalFresh benefits, Aguilar said, forcing Inland Empire households to lean on no-cost community food programs just to get by.

“One year after Trump’s and Republicans’ Big Ugly Bill cut food assistance programs like CalFresh and took food off the tables of millions of Americans, California families are paying the price,” Rep. Aguilar said at the event.

He commended organizations like the Family Service Association of Redlands that help ensure people in our community don’t go hungry.

“But in the wealthiest nation on earth, there’s no reason that should even be a possibility. I’ll keep fighting back against Republican cuts to food assistance programs and work to bring down costs so that every California family can afford the healthy meals they need to thrive,” he said.

For more information:

• Inland Empire Lowrider Alliance 15th Annual Backpack Drive & Resource Fair – details and registration:
  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/15th-annual-backpack-drive-and-giveaway-at-the-66ers-stadium-72526-tickets-1984988242267
• San Bernardino County CFS Backpack Giveaway & Resource Fair – event information:
  https://smilesbc.org/event/community-backpack-giveaway-3/

On the homeless student numbers, see:

Riverside CDE: https://dq.cde.ca.gov/dataquest/DQCensus/HmlsEnrByDTLevels.aspx?cds=33&agglevel=County&year=2024-25

Sam Bernardino CDE: https://dq.cde.ca.gov/dataquest/DQCensus/HmlsEnrByDTLevels.aspx?cds=36&agglevel=County&year=2024-25