Ocean State Job Lot customers donate backpacks to 30,000 children in need

Ocean State Job Lot Customers Donate 30,000 Backpacks to Children in Need Throughout the Region

 “Buy-Give-Get” program allows OSJL customers the opportunity to help families throughout the Northeast prior to the start of the 2021-2022 school year

The Ocean State Job Lot (OSJL), the region’s premier discount retail chain with 146 stores throughout the Northeast, is pleased to announce that its recent “Buy-Give-Get” program has resulted in the collection of 30,000 backpacks, all of which are being donated to the children in need, including children of military families, prior to the start of the 2021-2022 school year.

As part of the “Buy-Give-Get” program which ran from July 8^th through August 2^nd, any customer who bought a backpack at OSJL for $15.00 and gave it back to the store as a donation to children in need, got a $15.00 Crazy Deal Gift Card to be used for a future purchase at any Ocean State Job Lot store. 

The Ocean State Job Lot Charitable Foundation partnered with the New England Patriots Foundation and the USA Veterans Military Support Foundation, both of which collected school supplies through their own networks as part of the program, to distribute the backpacks to children in need, including children of military families, across the region. On August 17^th, volunteers from OSJL’s stores and Rhode Island-based distribution center and corporate office gathered at Foxborough Terminal near Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, MA to help stuff a portion of the backpacks with donated school supplies. Beginning August 18^th, the school supply-stuffed backpacks were distributed to children across New England, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.

“The results of our ‘Buy-Give-Get’ program are a true testament to our customers’ generosity and a salute to the military families in our communities,” said David Sarlitto, Executive Director, Ocean State Job Lot Charitable Foundation. “With our customers’ support and the help of the New England Patriots Foundation and the USA Veterans Military Support Foundation, we’re working to deliver all 30,000 of these backpacks before the first school bells ring in each of the states where we have stores.”

About Ocean State Job Lot:

Founded in 1977, Ocean State Job Lot is a growing, privately held discount retail chain with 146 stores in New England, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, approximately 5,600 employees, and annual sales exceeding $800 million. Job Lot sells brand name, first quality merchandise at closeout prices. Shoppers find an ever-changing array of household goods, apparel, pet supplies, seasonal products (holiday, gardening, patio, pool and beach supplies), and kitchen pantry staples at a fraction of their typical price. The company was named a three-time “Best Midsize Employer” by Forbes Magazine and a US Best Managed Company by Deloitte.

The Ocean State Job Lot Charitable Foundation has a long history of philanthropic leadership, supporting numerous causes, including feeding the hungry, helping the homeless, assisting veterans and military families, aiding animal rescue, caring for children, advancing healthcare, supporting the arts and promoting learning. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it distributed $15 million in PPE to school systems, hospitals and other healthcare facilities, and police and fire departments across New England and the Northeast. Ocean State Job Lot is headquartered at 375 Commerce Park Road in the Quonset Point Business Park, North Kingstown, RI 02852.  Phone: (401) 295-2672; Web: https://www.oceanstatejoblot.com/ ###