Assistance League of Phoenix hits the road with 'Operation School Bell'

PHOENIX — The Assistance League of Phoenix (ALP) is hitting the road for the new school year, bringing the Delivering Dreams Bus to 130 schools across the Valley for Operation School Bell, a program that provides clothing and hygiene items for children who are “clothing insecure."

“The biggest thing we saw last year was a lot of kids coming onto the bus with no socks and or no underwear. So really, those basic essentials,” said Aimee Runyon, the CEO of ALP.

Throughout the school year, ALP and volunteers will travel across Phoenix with the Delivering Dreams Buses in tow, providing wardrobe packages for students in need.

The wardrobe package, Runyon said, “has just a little bit of everything,” which includes three shirts, two bottoms, a sweatshirt, socks and underwear, as well as a brand new pair of shoes.

“One of the things we really pride ourselves on is that we're not really giving items just that the kids need, but really things that they would want to have,” Runyon said. “We want them to fit in with their peers. We want this to lift their self-esteem.”

For the 2023 school year, shoe options include a variety of colors and shoe styles, like low-tops, high-tops, and slip-ons, Runyon told ABC15.

“We really want to provide children with choice wherever we can, because a lot of these kids don't get many choices in their life circumstances,” Runyon said. According to Runyon, Operation School Bell provides clothing to over 13,000 kids across the Valley. However, she said, over 140,000 children qualify for their program. “We are just barely hitting actual need that exists,” Runyon said.

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