Need school supplies? Check out the Back to School Rodeo event for freebies

The City of Yuma is here to help you prepare for the start of the school year

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) – If your kids need school supplies, don’t worry.

The city of Yuma has you covered. The 30th Annual Back to School Rodeo is Saturday, July 20 at the Yuma Civic Center from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Brissa Garcia, special events coordinator in Yuma, says there will be 2,000 cinch bags available.

The idea is that everyone in line will be on a first come, first served basis. The child must be present.

“What makes this event special is that this event is sponsor driven. So I start with zero budget and I go out into the community and tell them about the event,” Garcia said. “And all these businesses from Yuma County donate the money so we can buy the school supplies.”

The bags are filled with a single-subject notebook, essay paper, filler paper, highlighters, and more.

“We try to work off of the list that the schools give to the parents. So we really try to target those specific items that the school is asking for,” Garcia adds.

This year’s event will be physically present again and will offer much more than just supplies.

“So this event, which started out as a physical event and of course COVID came along and the city continued to host this event through a drive-thru and now we’re back. So this is the first year that we’re going to be back in person and we’re going to have businesses, nonprofits from Yuma County at the Civic Center, also handing out resources and school supplies to our kids and their families,” Garcia said.

Garica says that if for whatever reason you don’t get a cinch bag, don’t get discouraged.

There are also other organizations that hand out free bags of school supplies.