Employees at the CITGO Lemont Refinery partnered with Catholic Charities Diocese of Joliet on its annual Back to School Fair by donating approximately 10 boxes of school supplies for students in need.
The Back to School Fair, which assists children from low-income households, took place on July 30 at Joliet Catholic Academy and provided approximately 1,300 Will County students with the items needed to have a successful school year.
According to Glenn Van Cura, executive director of Catholic Charities, Diocese of Joliet, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s fair was conducted as a contact-free drive-thru to promote social distancing. Each participant brought a ticket (either printed out or on their phones) and held it up to the car window to be scanned, and then a staff member placed the boxes of school supplies directly into the trunk of the vehicle.
“Our school supplies fair is truly a community effort and we are grateful to companies like CITGO and its employees who generously donated,” said Cura.
In addition to the standard items, each student received a washable, reusable face mask.
“This school year is unprecedented with so many unknowns, which is why we wanted to get involved and support local families and students in our community,” said Dennis Willig, CITGO Lemont Vice President and General Manager.
