Tampa Bay Buccaneers owner Darcie Glazer Kassewitz kicked off the Glazer Family Foundation's 2008 "Backpack It Back-to-School" program at a presentation Monday during the Buccaneers' morning practice at Disney's Wide World of Sports.
With help from team mascot Captain Fear, Glazer Kassewitz awarded backpacks filled with school supplies and Bucs merchandise to 100 children from West Central Florida non-profit organizations. In total, 1,500 kids from the following 14 community groups will receive backpacks:
- Macedonia Baptist Church Youth Department * Parents Against Abuse Abduction Signals * Second Chance – Last Opportunity * Corporation to Develop Communities of Tampa, Inc. * Weightman Middle School E.S.O.L. Students * Love and Hope Foundation, Inc. * Chaso Middle School * Tampa Heights Junior Civic Association * Justice and Peace Office, Inc. * Take Stock in Children/Pasco Education Foundation * Big Brothers Big Sisters of Pinellas County, Inc. * Project LINK, Inc. * NFL/YET Centers of Tampa Bay, Inc. * Abe Brown Ministries, Inc. "Without the necessary tools to learn, children cannot maximize their educational experience," said Glazer Kassewitz. "The Glazer Family Foundation is dedicated to providing Florida's youth with backpacks and supplies to ensure that students can capitalize on the efforts of our teachers and educators."
Through the Glazer Family Foundation's "Backpack It Back-to-School" program, 1,500 kids in Hillsborough, Pinellas and Orange Counties receive backpacks each summer. A total of 12,000 bags have been given away to date.
The Glazer Family Foundation is dedicated to assisting charitable and educational causes in the West Central Florida region. The foundation aids established not-for-profit organizations that work with youth and families to help identify and create programs which support positive social and economic development within our communities. The Glazers, who own the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, established the foundation in 1999. Since that time, the Glazer Family Foundation has given millions in programs, grants, tickets and merchandise to the Tampa Bay area. Most recently, the foundation donated $5 million toward the construction of a new children's museum in downtown Tampa, which will be named the Glazer Children's Museum. Visit www.glazerfamilyfoundation.com for more information.
