Clothing program ensures needy students in Southern Nevada can show up to school in style

Students look implicit the contents of their duffle bags during an Assisting Lives successful Las Vegas “One School Every Student” covering donation astatine Cozine Elementary School successful North Las Vegas Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026. Photo by: Steve Marcus / Las Vegas Sun

As a retired supervisor for the Clark County School District’s attendance office, Pam Foltz says a main crushed wherefore students of each ages skip people is that they're ashamed of what they person to wear.

“Clothing has an tremendous magnitude to bash with attendance issues,” she said.

Now arsenic a unpaid with Assisting Lives successful Las Vegas, Foltz ensures children successful request are wearing new, in-style clothes.

The philanthropic Assisting Lives successful Las Vegas, formerly known arsenic the Assistance League of Las Vegas, has 2 initiatives to formal children crossed the territory — AL’s Closet, which stocks closets astatine dozens of schools with caller covering for contiguous needs, and the Our School Boutique, which invites families by referral to prime a week’s worthy of caller clothing, a brace of shoes and hygiene items. Foltz, who worked for CCSD for 33 years, chairs the Our School Boutique program.

On Thursday, to people Assisting Lives’ 50th anniversary, a tiny service of volunteers took the Our School Boutique conception connected the roadworthy by trucking astir 600 duffel bags of clothing, shoes and different essentials to Cozine Elementary School successful North Las Vegas. Almost each kid determination comes from a low-income family. 

One schoolroom astatine a time, students came to the hallways to prime up a donation with their sanction connected it. Zippered bags for Ricardo, Bella, Michael, Harmony and others waited nether a partition painted with the words “love,” “believe” and “lead.” Those bags didn’t enactment zipped up for agelong arsenic excited kids recovered their names and instantly tried connected their caller sneakers.

Third-grader Diego unpacked his bag, admired the contents and decided what helium would deterioration to schoolhouse the adjacent day: achromatic trousers and an orangish T-shirt with a shot decal.

His container besides came with a brace of jeans, which helium said helium doesn't have, and socks. He said he’s ever losing his socks.

“It means a batch to maine due to the fact that I don't person a batch of clothes,” helium said softly. “It’s truly nice.”

Each student’s container came with 3 pairs of pants, six shirts, six pairs of underwear, six pairs of socks, a hoodie, a blanket, a brace of shoes and a hygiene kit. 

Parents needed to capable retired a signifier with their children’s sizes to get a bag. Almost each did. Assisting Lives provided capable truthful that those who didn’t instrumentality a signifier could inactive get a bag.

Cozine Principal Jodi Notch said that connected immoderate chilly days she volition get connected her telephone to bid lukewarm layers from Wal-Mart for contiguous transportation for a kid who is astir to spell to recess oregon carnal acquisition people successful conscionable a T-shirt.

Adequate covering is simply a basal need, and “you can’t thatch a kid that doesn't person the remainder of their needs met,” she said.

She spotted 1 lad carrying his container Thursday with a grin that grew arsenic helium walked down the hallway with shoulders back.

Foltz said Assisting Lives dresses much than 4,000 kids a twelvemonth done Our School Boutique. 

“All you person to spot is 1 kid smile,” she said.