Philadelphia organizations provide hundreds of bags of PPE for PreK students returning to school

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Two Philadelphia organizations provided hundreds of bags of essential PPE to returning PreK students and their families in the city's Hunting Park section on Monday morning.

Wearing a face mask is part of how students in the Asociación Puertorriqueños en Marcha's (APM) Pre-K program will remember their first day of school.

"This is a learning process," said Margarita Hernandez, senior director early childhood programs.

Part of keeping everyone safe also comes with each family receiving a free bag of PPE before kids step foot inside.

"We have masks for children, masks for adults, face shields and hand sanitizer," Hernandez said.

These supplies are a big part of the return to the classroom at Rising Sun Early Childhood Education Center in Hunting Park.

Hundreds of bags of PPE are coming in thanks to grant money provided by the Philadelphia Foundation's PHL COVID-19 Fund and the Hispanic Federation.

"I'm just happy. I'm just very excited. I'm comfortable with it. We're prepared, we're ready," said parent Keith Davis.

The school has been open since September with a limited number of students, but on Monday, dozens more returned for the first time this school year.

Parents said it's been a challenge handling lessons at home and they feel it's possible to safely return to school.

"It's harder. It's not beneficial, so I prefer them to be in school," said parent Nancy Melendez.

The hope is that more kids will eventually return to the classroom in the coming weeks.