History
KidSmart- Tools for Learning opened in 2002 as the first free educational supply store in Missouri. KidSmart is one of 35 grassroots organizations in the country. The KidSmart mission is to ensure that children and their classrooms in the Greater Metropolitan St. Louis Area have the basic tools for learning by transferring, at no cost, the community's surplus supplies and merchandise into the hands of teachers for school children in need.
The KidSmart free store is a community supported resource which transforms surplus and new product from corporations and individuals, into educational tools for Pre-K through 12th grade children who are at the greatest risk of failing in our schools. KidSmart's target population is the over 84,000 local children who live in poverty.
During its first year of operation KidSmart served 5,000 children from 14 eligible schools, through the Free Store. Approaching its six-year anniversary, KidSmart is currently serving more than 40,000 children from 80 of the 177 eligible schools, and has distributed nearly $8 million worth of school supplies and educational resources to children in need. Teachers from eligible public and non-public schools "shop" for free each month of the school year, August-May, for supplies their students desperately need. These supplies include: paper, pencils, markers, glue and other educational materials to enrich and inspire learning.
Corporate, foundation, and individual financial partners help ensure the continued success of the Free Store. Surplus items that businesses and individuals would normally discard are used instead to enhance the educational foundation of children with limited resources. Our operation encourages a recycling philosophy and provides an easy and effective method to utilize excess materials. For businesses, it is a way to take surplus items -- paper goods, pens, pencils, any kind of office supplies or merchandise -- and turn them into a tax-deductible donation to help area children in need. Additionally, community groups, businesses and individuals often conduct supply drives which help keep the shelves of the Free Store well stocked with new materials.