Company to donate 5,000 bags of school supplies in West Ga. community
Southwire is excited to announce the return of its annual Back to School giveaway on Saturday, July 18 from 9 A.M. to noon (EDT) at Midway Church, located at 1 Midway Church Drive, Villa Rica, Ga.
This year, Southwire will be giving away more than 30,000 bags of free school supplies across its communities, with nearly 5,000 of those bags allocated to the west Georgia area.
The event will follow a drive-thru format, in which community attendees will drive through a service line, pop their trunks and allow Project GIFT volunteers to load in the appropriate number of bags.
To assist as many families as possible, a representative from each family must be present to pick up the school supplies. Children are not required to attend, and there is no paperwork needed to receive the free supplies. If children are present, then each child in attendance will receive a bag.
Upon arrival, attendees will be asked to provide the number of each bag type they need based on the ages of their children. Two categories of bags will be offered at the event: one for elementary students and another for middle and high school students.
This year, Southwire’s impact will reach even further thanks to our new partnership with the Empty Stocking Fund of Atlanta, which is helping put more supplies into the hands of local students and families.
“This event is always one of our favorites of the year,” said Kristian Whittington, Southwire’s Director of Giving Back. “One of the most exciting additions for 2026 is our partnership with the Empty Stocking Fund of Atlanta. By working through their organization to secure quality, affordable school supplies, we’ve managed to nearly double the number of supplies we can include in each bag type, allowing us to make even more of an impact on the students in our communities heading into the next school year.”
Southwire’s Back to School giveaway is made possible each year by the generosity of community partners like this year’s presenting partners, CDT Construction, University of West Georgia, RaLin and MedImpact.
Other event partners include Jason Templeton State Farm, Gradick Communications, Heart Wood Products, Phoenix Wood Products, New Leaf Marketing, Times Georgian, 3:16 Healthcare and Tisinger Vance.
In addition to Southwire’s Back to School giveaway, Southwire and West Georgia Technical College are also bringing back the My Favorite Teacher Contest for 2026.
Through the contest, up to 22 teachers across Southwire’s footprint will each receive $1,000 for their classrooms based on student nominations. Students can nominate a teacher now through August 1, 2026, by submitting a written or video entry sharing why their teacher should be selected at https://sowire.co/myfavoriteteacher.
If you are not located in the West Georgia area and would like more information about Back to School in your area or about the My Favorite Teacher Content, please call the Project GIFT Hotline at 770-832-4729 or send an email to [email protected].
Stay tuned to Southwire’s Back to School website and social media channels for the latest updates.
