Many a Calgary kid left St. Martha’s School with new backpacks stuffed with essentials Tuesday afternoon. This year’s Owen Hart Foundation backpack giveaway was at the northeast Calgary school after a visit to Trapped Escape Room a few days prior. At both, backpacks full of school supplies, dental hygiene products, stuffed animals and snacks were given to those who need them. On Tuesday, families were lined up around the block. Foundation director Martha Hart and others from her group happily handed out the backpacks and chatted people up. Members of the Calgary Police Service were also on hand to help out. Last week, Hart expressed her pride in the backpack giveaway events. She said it’s great for kids, who leave “inspired to go back to school” and “happy because they’re getting stuffed backpacks.” And she said it’s great for parents who are struggling. “Especially in our dire economic climate right now and with all the problems that we’re having on so many levels,” Hart told CTV News. “It’s really helping families. “It’s one less thing that they’ll have to worry about.” The Owen Hart Foundation is celebrating 27 years. Owen Hart died May 23, 1999, at the age of 34, in a stunt gone horribly wrong during a WWE (then WWF) show in Kansas City, Mo. The foundation was created the following year in his honour. It runs several signature events, and many community initiatives throughout the year. It has helped in the areas of education, affordable housing and international aid for vulnerable people.
