Over 40 backpacks, fully stocked and ready for local students.

This summer, Bud Matthews Services teamed up with Gonzalez Painters & Contractors and The Builder’s Agency to support the Monet Richardson Community Foundation Backpack Drive, and the response was incredible.

Together we collected over 40 backpacks, fully stocked and ready for K-5 students across Orange, Durham, Edgecombe, Nash, and Pitt counties. Knowing that those backpacks were heading into the hands of children who needed them, children who would walk into their first day of school prepared and ready, made every bit of the effort worth it.

This project came straight from the heart. The Monet Richardson Community Foundation is a nonprofit founded in 2021 by Pat Richardson for her daughter, Kristian “Krissy” Monet Richardson, who passed away in May 2021.

Monet Richardson Community Foundation: Youth. Community. Resources.

The Monet Richardson Community Foundation works to enhance educational experiences and inspire students and teachers by connecting community resources through collaboration, recognition, and innovative partnerships.

Even from a young age, Krissy had a strong passion for children, social justice and activism, and she was determined to help the students in her community. In 2018, Krissy partnered with the Carrboro-Chapel Hill YMCA Y Learning program to create a backpack program to help provide resources for students in underserved communities. Over a hundred backpacks were filled with school supplies and distributed to students in Orange County schools.

Her mission was simple and beautiful: make sure children know they are seen, supported, and have people in their corner. Carrying that mission forward alongside this incredible organization was something powerful and deeply rewarding. The joy this experience brought our team is something we won’t forget.

This is what community looks like.

To everyone who donated, shared, and helped make this possible, thank you. We’ll be back next year. 🎒

Best,
The Bud Matthews Team