TAMPA, Fla. — With the start of the school year less than a month away in Tampa Bay, it’s time for back-to-school shopping.

To help make the experience less stressful, the Bullard Family Foundation kicked off its annual Back to School Bash Saturday.

What You Need To Know

  •   Bullard Family Foundation hosted its annual Back to School Bash at Raymond James Stadium Saturday

  •   Organizers say 30,000 backpacks filled with school supplies were distributed during the event

  •   Titus O’Neil is the founder of the organization and says the event helps many families

The event, which was started by Thaddeus Bullard — also known as Titus O’Neil — welcomed hundreds of families to Raymond James Stadium.

“This is just a step to kind of help me out a little bit, so it’s beneficial,” says Charmell Davis, who was attending the back-to-school event for the first time.

She said she knows times are tough for many, so having this at her fingertips was crucial.

“It’s not so stressful to kind of think, 'Well, is she going to have a bookbag? Is she going to need supplies? it kind of takes that stressor off,” she said.

Sheila Johnson, who was attending the event for the second time, said she knows a lot goes into setting up and holding the event for the community.

“This particular event I think is very important to the community because I feel like the organization goes out of their way to plan it and get it together.”

This is the seventh year the Bullard Family Foundation has hosted the event — this year in partnership with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and AdventHealth.

O’Neil said the Back to School Bash gives him an opportunity to give back to a community that provided for him.

"We’re all moving in one direction with the same cause, which is to support these students and these families and these teachers," he said.

Organizers said 30,000 backpacks filled with school supplies were given out during the event.

Haircuts, physicals and eye exams were also part of the big day.

Families also got to learn about the different resources available in the community through educational booths.

Davis said events like these are helping her daughter be prepared, and she wished more events like Saturday's would be held in other parts of the county.  

“I realized that our kids are not supported as they should be," she said. "Especially it starts at home. We got to start somewhere — we got to start with the parents and then the teachers and so forth."

Event organizers say they’re looking forward to continuing to make every year bigger and reach more families.