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VIDEO: Foothill Unity’s Back to School Event Fills Backpacks and Hearts at Santa Anita Park 15%
By EDDIE RIVERA8%
7/30/2026, 6:48:00 AM
BS Summary: This article contains 19 faulty reasoning types, including Attempt to Sell a Product or Service, Appeal to Emotion, and Status Quo Bias, with Availability Heuristic as the most egregious example at 27.1% saturation with 105 hits. Analysis detected 888 faulty-reasoning hits from 387 analyzed words, generating a BS Score of 30.7% and a BS Rank of 15% (19,022 of 22,362 articles). This article is better (less manipulative) than 85.10% of the article peer group.
The line of families stretched across Santa Anita Park on Wednesday, and by the end of the day, more than 1,000 kids had walked away with new backpacks, fresh school supplies and a little extra confidence heading into the new year.
Foothill Unity Center's annual back-to-school event, now celebrating its 29th year, has become something of a summer tradition for families across the San Gabriel Valley.
Backpacks were stocked with supplies matched to each child's grade level, and there were socks, underwear, gift cards for shoes and other clothing items to go around.
Families could also grab a haircut or a manicure, and health and medical services were on hand as well.
Jhoana Hirasuna, executive director of Foothill Unity Center, said the event is about more than just gear.
She said it is about giving kids and parents a confident, dignified start to the school year, especially as the cost of living keeps climbing.
“We understand that the cost of living is just rising,” Hirasuna said.
“Parents sometimes are faced with a hard decision of ‘How do I continue to meet the needs, pay the bills when this additional expense comes every summer.’?”
Isell Tostado came to the event for the first time Wednesday with her children, Margarita Delgado and Maximillian Delgado.
As a single mom, she said, the day meant a lot.
“It means a lot because as a single mom, it's hard to have stuff for the school,” Tostado said.
“And it's very wonderful that there's a community out there that provides for us.”
Her daughter is headed to Monroe Elementary this fall.
Tostado had a simple message for anyone on the fence about coming out next year: stop by, take a look, and donate if you can.
Behind the scenes, keeping an event like this running is no small task.
Roberta Preskill, board president of Foothill Unity Center, said the nonprofit serves families across the valley who are low income or on the edge of homelessness, and that fundraising has gotten tougher as government support shrinks and everyday donors feel their own budgets stretched thin.
“Anything anyone can do to get involved, to volunteer with us, to donate in kind or to donate funds,” Preskill said, “is greatly appreciated.”
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