500 children from military families given school supplies through Operation Homefront

SAN DIEGO (KUSI) —500 children of local active-duty military families received backpacks filled with school supplies Saturday as part of an Operation Homefront event co-sponsored by Science Applications International Corp. Operation Homefront, a nonprofit that helps out military families with various needs, and SAIC distributed backpacks to children at De Portola Middle School, 11010 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.

The backpacks contained items such as paper, pencils and notebooks, said Lauren Presti, SAIC spokeswoman. She added that children registered in advance for them.

Presti said that between 15 and 20 SAIC employees were on site to help out. According to Operation Homefront’s website, Dollar Tree provided the school items.

"It’s such a great event,” Presti said, adding that similar backpack giveaways were held in other cities. According to Operation Homefront’s website, backpacks were distributed in San Antonio, New Orleans, and at military bases in Illinois and South Carolina.