Ready, Set, Learn!

Can you imagine doing your job without the proper tools or equipment? Unfortunately, that’s a reality that many kids face as they head to school each fall.
To prevent this predicament, the Ready, Set, Learn program of Dodge County is collecting school supplies until the end of July. Drop-off bins are located in the front of Shopko Hometown and St. John’s Lutheran Church in Kasson.
Coordinator Tanya Young said Ready, Set, Learn is trying to help as many kids as possible.
“Last year we served almost 350 kids with the donations we received, and this year we’re hoping for closer to 500,” she said.
She said each child receives a backpack filled with school supplies.
Besides individual donations, Ready, Set, Learn is raising those school supplies through two big events. 
The first one is hosting the Ugandan Kids Choir at St. John’s Church on Sunday, July 16. In lieu of money, Young asks community members to bring glue sticks and spiral notebooks.
The second one is a Stuff the Bus event from 4 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, July 19, at the Dodge County Fair in Kasson.
It will be held close to where the grandstands are located, and people can bring their supplies or free will donations there, Young said.
“Even if you can only donate one pack of pencils, that’s OK. We don’t need everyone to do a lot,” she said. “If we have a lot of people doing a little, it really helps.”
She said the Ready, Set, Learn committee has 10 members from around Dodge County.
“We have committee members from Kasson-Mantorville, Hayfield, and Triton who are either counselors or teachers at the schools, and they know about the need in our community and a lot of them have stepped up,” she said. “It’s a good group of people that will help, and then when it comes time for distribution we’ll have a lot more volunteers.”
Distribution of backpacks filled with school supplies will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, Aug. 14-15, at St. John’s Lutheran Church.
Call Young at 316-390-5368 for applications or more information. Or visit a Semcac food shelf or Minnesota Prairie County Alliance.