CORYELL COUNTY, Texas — A Gatesville mom is using her photography business to help local teachers check items off their school supply wish lists.
On average, teachers spend nearly $900 of their own money on classroom supplies and decorations each year. Lexi Brown, a local music teacher at Gatesville Primary School, said she spends anywhere between $300 and $500 a year out of pocket.
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"If we're going to do a project, like, um, this last year we made little shaker instruments, so I will provide them because there are students who can't get supplies, and so if I can provide those supplies for those kids, then it just makes their day easier," Brown said.
Brown said creating a welcoming environment for her students is a priority — and a cost she absorbs herself.
"Kids don't want to come into an empty room. They want something that's going to catch their eye, and I want my room to be a room that kids are excited to go into and where they feel welcome and loved," Brown said.
Sady Keenum, a homeschool mom, said her own experience purchasing curriculum and supplies gave her a firsthand understanding of what teachers face financially.
"As a homeschool mom, I know exactly how much it costs. We have to pay for the curriculum, and we have a homeschool room. I have a dining room that I've turned into a classroom, and if I didn't make it warm and inviting for my children to come and sit in every single day, I think it would be more of a struggle," Keenum said.
That experience inspired Keenum to take action.
"I think the Lord has just made teachers so prominent on my heart, they need as much help as we can give them," Keenum said.
Keenum is now dedicating a portion of the proceeds from her back-to-school photography sessions to clearing items off teachers' wish lists.
"I am doing back to school photos, and part of the proceeds, 50% of the proceeds go back to clearing off teachers' wish lists, not just local teachers, not just Gatesville, but every teacher that I can get my hands on," Keenum said.
On Aug. 9, Keenum will have a setup in Gatesville for school mini sessions with available time slots.
Last year, Keenum helped Brown and 6 other teachers with their wish lists. She said she hopes to help several more this year, and it's not limited to teachers in Gatesville, she wants to help teachers across Central Texas.
"There are kids who can't get things off their list. And so, even if we can just get supplies off our list to help those kids and those families," Brown said.
Brown said the effort makes a real difference in the classroom.
"I think getting the materials to be able to help each kid learn in a way that they learn best and to be successful is really important," Brown said.
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