Empowering Educators Across Central Florida Through Pencil Boy Programs

A Gift for Teaching is honored to share that the Kiwanis Club of Orlando Foundation has awarded a grant of $15,000 to support Pencil Boy Programs for the 2025–26 school year.

This funding helps keep both Pencil Boy Express – The Mobile Free Store and Pencil Boy Curbside running strong throughout the year. With this gift, local teachers will continue to have access to the free supplies they need to keep their classrooms creative, stocked, and student-ready.

Pencil Boy Express is a mobile pop-up store that travels directly to schools across Orange County, allowing eligible educators to “shop” for essential items at a nearby campus. Pencil Boy Curbside offers a convenient online ordering and pick up, saving teachers time while still providing vital classroom necessities. Together, these Pencil Boy Programs make sure as many teachers as possible, no matter their schedule or school location, have the resources to help students succeed.

In addition to this generous contribution, the Kiwanis Club of Orlando Foundation also volunteered at a Pencil Boy Express visit to East River High School to see firsthand how much these supplies mean to our educators and their students. Their hands-on support helped teachers restock educational resources, strengthen community connections, and showcased the difference partnerships like this can make in public education.

“It’s so amazing to see new partners step up like this. We’re deeply grateful for the Kiwanis Club of Orlando Foundation’s support in removing barriers to learning and helping to inspire every student in the classroom to reach their fullest potential,” said Jane Thompson, President of A Gift for Teaching.

“Their generosity keeps Pencil Boy Programs rolling – literally and figuratively – so we can continue reminding teachers that their community is behind them every step of the way.”

A Gift for Teaching’s Pencil Boy Programs collectively distributed $1.4 million worth of supplies to teachers last school year, helping ensure that students across Central Florida have the tools, confidence, and creativity they needed to succeed.

With the support of partners like the Kiwanis Club of Orlando Foundation, the mission to empower educators and inspire future leaders continues – one classroom at a time.