St. Mark Youth Enrichment Event Supports Students

The Runde Community Support Truck will be stuffed to the gills today with school supplies as St. Mark Youth Enrichment prepares for its annual Apples for Students / Fill the Bag event!

Volunteers will gather over two days to stuff about 3,500 bags full of school supplies for area children in need.

Beth McGorry, director of donor relations at St. Mark’s, picked up the support truck at Runde’s today.

“We are just so thankful,” she said, noting the use of the free box truck comes in handy for a variety of nonprofits in the area.

The event will be from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 4 and Wednesday, Aug. 5 at the Grand River Center in Dubuque.

The Runde Community Support Truck is free for area nonprofits to use.

Want to volunteer? Click here to sign up for a time slot.

Can’t volunteer, but want to help out? Donate here.

This year, social distancing guidelines will be followed and masks will be required.

“When the pandemic hit, it made it just a little bit crazier,” McGorry said. “All of this has been so different. Suppliers have been tighter and we’ve got some friends who came out and purchased like 8,000 notebooks because they are so hard to get.”

St. Mark Youth Enrichment has done Apples for Students for over 20 years, serving over 30,000 students. They partner with Audubon, Fulton, Lincoln and Marshall Elementary Schools, as well as Dyersville, Farley, Peosta, and Seton Catholic Elementary Schools.

“We’ve been working so hard to make sure we’ve got 3,500 bags of school supplies taken care of,” McGorry said. “We can’t wait to make sure everyone’s first day is just a little bit more calm.”

St. Mark Youth Enrichment has been providing healthy and enriching before and after school and summer programs for 30 years.

To learn more about St. Mark Youth Enrichment, visit www.stmarkyouthenrichment.org.