NAMES IN THE NEWS

Henry Schein Celebrates 25 Years of its Back to School Program

SEPTEMBER 2022

This school year, Henry Schein Inc. of Melville, New York, celebrated the 25th anniversary of its Back to School program. The program provides backpacks, school supplies and other forms of support to underserved children and their families. Since the program’s inception in 1998, the company has helped more than 65,000 children start a new school year with confidence, according to a release.

This year, Schein staff members at 34 locations, including 21 US facilities and 13 international sites in five countries—Canada, Ireland, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom—are donating backpacks filled with school supplies to more than 5,000 children, according to the release. At each Henry Schein location, teams work with local social service agencies to identify participating children and their families. The Back to School program is a flagship initiative of Henry Schein Cares, the company’s global corporate social responsibility program.

“Over the past 25 years, the Back to School program has continued to grow and evolve, helping to meet the ever-changing needs of the communities in which we live and work,” said Stanley M. Bergman, chairman of the board and chief executive officer (CEO) of Henry Schein, in the release. “Our inaugural program served 175 children and the Team Schein spirit has remained strong since the beginning, with Team Schein members joining all over the world to help furnish children with the essentials needed to have a successful school year.”

The Back to School program began when staff members came together with an idea to help kids in need, under the leadership of Gerry Benjamin, the recently retired chief administrative officer of Henry Schein, according to the release.

“No parent or guardian should have to face financial pressure and struggles in trying to meet what are essential costs for their child’s education,” said Suzanne Connolly, CEO of Barnardos Children’s Charity in Ireland, in the release. “And no child should feel anxiety about the price of school supplies. At Barnardos, our mission is to deliver services and work with families, communities and our partners to transform the lives of vulnerable children who are affected by adverse childhood experiences. By collaborating with Henry Schein to support the back-to-school needs of vulnerable children, we can help them achieve great things, because childhood lasts a lifetime.”