From School Supplies to Community Connection: How One Church’s Simple Gesture Sparked Lasting Support for Local Educators

It all started with donation of school supplies in 2022. The parishioners of The Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd in Riverside wanted to bring back a sense of community connection and support by helping our local elementary school as we made our way out of COVID-era restrictions. So, we started with one simple gesture each fall of donating school supplies.

During the 2024 donation drop-off, a core group of four delivered the supplies and met with Mr. Todd Simpson, principal at Central Riverside Elementary School. His enthusiasm for the school was infectious and made us want to do even more. The backbone of our schools is staff and teachers and he suggested we support them by bringing goodies for a staff work day. The idea took off.

Elementary school is a near-universal experience and when other parishioners heard of the event they gleefully joined in with donations and attendance. What started as a vague idea became a fully catered event with Halloween decorations and local fare from European Street Cafe in Riverside.

The inspiring words of Mr. Simpson sparked inspiration in our parishioners to bring love and support to our school staff and teachers. We had such great fun and fellowship and the teachers and staff seemed to truly appreciate us taking time to serve them as they ready themselves to serve the children.

Public schools are the great equalizer where every student has a shot at success, a nutritious meal, and the support of that school community. No matter their background, home situation or scholastic level, each child has a chance to excel. We at Good Shepherd hope that by partnering with other local organizations we can continue to support our neighborhood schools and inspire our amazing educators to keep providing loving care and quality education to our children and community.

To quote one of the dedicated and very wise staff members at Central Riverside “we are all here today to prepare for tomorrow.”