On August 10th, 2019, Mangrove Community and its community partners will be hosting the 1st Annual Aldine-Greenspoint Back 2 School Bash. We are looking forward to bringing valuable resources to the Greenspoint Area of Houston, Texas. This area has been impacted by major flood events including the Tax Day Flood of 2016 and was hit again the following year by Hurricane Harvey. On top of 48% of its residents making under $25,000 a year, back to school can cause a financial strain on families from this area. 

So, Mangrove Community and partnering organizations have teamed together to provide 3,000+ backpacks with school supplies, free immunizations, health screening, haircuts, clothing, shoes, personal hygiene items, and undergarments to students from elementary to middle school ages. We will also have services and resources provided to high school students like job skills training programs, college application assistance, and scholarships to first year college students. Greenspoint's population has lower levels of educational attainment than the city of Houston as a whole. Only 6% of Greenspoint residents had a bachelor's degree or higher in 2012, compared with 29% of Houston residents. Conversely, 45% of Greenspoint residents have no high school diploma, compared with only 25% of Houstonians overall. Therefore, it is important for us to get involve in education by first making sure the students in this area have the tools to set them up for success.

We build communities by strengthening one branch at a time. At this event, we are focused on providing tools and resources needed for student’s success. We also provide food programs and mentoring programs to provide a well-rounded program to give students stability and structure in the different aspects of their lives that they may not be able to get at home. We also provide mental health counselors to provide for their overall well-being.

We also provide ways for our students to give back through various volunteer efforts such as community clean ups, food distributions, coaching, and assisting senior citizens with filing paper work on computer for those who lack technical computer knowledge.