Battle Ground Public Schools

Battle Ground Education Foundation seeks community support

Sept. 22, 2022

The Battle Ground Education Foundation (BGeF) provides support for thousands of children throughout Battle Ground Public Schools each year. This week and next, the local nonprofit is hoping the community helps them continue that mission.

The first opportunity continues through midnight on Thursday, Sept. 22. Give More 24! is a virtual  day of giving, allowing donors to contribute to causes they care about. BGeF has a sponsor who has agreed to match the first $1,000 in donations. 

Destination Graduation happens Sept. 28 through Oct. 1. Previously, the event was a dinner where attendees could bid on auction items such as gift baskets, trips, services and more. After going fully virtual during the pandemic, Destination Graduation will now be hybrid with nearly 60 items available to bid on online. Other packages will be available at the live auction at the dinner on Oct. 1 at the Battle Ground Community Center. Doors open at 5pm. Tickets for the dinner are expected to sell out soon, but information on how to register for the online auction is available on the BGeF website.

BGeF board members attend the ribbon cutting for the nonprofit’s new offices at the Lewisville campus

BGeF also recently celebrated the opening of a new office location inside the district’s former Lewisville campus. The location gives them space to expand their offerings and support the work that they’re doing each year.

Founded in 1994, BGeF provides free backpacks and school supplies through their Stuff the Bus events and books and materials for Read Across America and summer reading programs. The foundation also awards grants for schools to use for student events and assists hundreds of individual children in need throughout the year. Through  the district’s Family and Community Resource Center (FCRC) families in need are provided access to resources, donated clothing items, supplies or hygiene products. BGeF can help individual students with things like shoes, clothing and more.

“The FCRC can’t go out and buy a kid a pair of tennis shoes and give it to them. That’s considered a gift of public funds,” said Linda Gellings, the foundation’s treasurer. “If we find out from a principal or track coach that there’s a kid who’s really good at track, but they need a new pair of shoes, we can buy him a pair of shoes and give it to him.”

During the pandemic, the foundation helped to secure a $20,000 grant to purchase Chromebook computers that they donated to the district. They also worked to set up free meal distribution during the pandemic using funding provided as part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farmers to Families foodbox program.

BGeF Executive Assistant Rebekah Postupak said they also work with local businesses, such as an optometrist who might provide free exams. Then the foundation will purchase the glasses with donations.

“These donation events are hugely important to the work we do, but I think it’s important for people to know that we’re doing this work all year,” said Postupak. “Financial donations are the most helpful, but we also need warm clothing, sleeping bags, things like that as we head into the winter season.”

More information about the work of the Battle Ground Education Foundation is available on their website. Learn more about the district’s Family and Community Resource Center on our website.