Boston Whaler holds 7th annual “Boatload of Backpacks”

Boston Whaler recently completed its seventh annual “Boatload of Backpacks” school supply drive to help area students start off the new school year on the right foot. Employee contributions and matching funds from Boston Whaler allowed more than 150 backpacks filled with school supplies to be delivered across three local elementary schools.

This year the delivery was made using a new 60th Anniversary 170 Montauk. A team from Boston Whaler including David Brannan, Kim Shaller, Nydia Alvarez-Ruiz, Shannon Stefanick and Nathan Abdalian greeted the students and their principals and helped to unload each delivery.

“Boatload of Backpacks is just one of many ways Boston Whaler supports our community,” said Abdalian, Whaler’s director of customer experience. “It was a pleasure to be involved again this year and meet with some of the students benefitting directly from the program. Our success as a company wouldn’t be possible without the community behind us, and we’re happy to be able to give back.”

On hand to receive the donations were Principal Becky Porter and Assistant Principal Michele Brown at Edgewater Public School; Principal Carrie Crkvenac and Assistant Principal Jennifer Holmgreen at Indian River Elementary; and Principal Dr. Jan McGee and Assistant Principal Daniel Hargrave at Burns Science and Technology Charter School. Each location received more than 50 backpacks, each containing a school supply kit of two boxes of Crayola crayons, 24 pencils, three glue sticks, scissors, paper and more for each school to distribute as the school year starts.