CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Students across the state are weeks into the new school year, yet some kids are still struggling to get all the school supplies needed in the classroom. As of last week, that changed for some students in Carborro. 

 

What You Need to Know 

One hundred and seventy students in Chapel Hill, Carborro and Edgecomb Counties got free backpacks last week  

Backpacks were donated by the Monet Richardson Community Foundation 

Pat Richardson started the foundation after her daughter passed away in May 

 

Unis Cang is one of more than a dozen students at Rashkis Elementary School in the "Y after School Learning Program." Students in the program are selected by social workers to get extra help with math, reading and comprehension. When Spectrum News 1 caught up with Cang, she told us she was having trouble zipping up her backpack. 

Pat Richardson has been helping students like Cang throughout the year. Her daughter, Kristian Monet Richardson, was a student at Rashkis Elementary School more than a decade ago. In 2018, she worked at the "Y After School Learning Program" and started a backpack drive for students.

She was able to pass out 98 backpacks to students in need. This past May, Kristian passed away in a car accident. Pat Richardson is now continuing her legacy with the Monet Richardson Community Foundation.

The foundation handed out 170 backpacks in total, with 140 going to Carborro and Chapel Hill, and another 30 going to Edgecomb School District.