NEENAH-MENASHA — The Neenah-Menasha Emergency Society has received a $10,000 project grant from the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region, Inc.

The grant is part of an unrestricted fund account managed by the Community Foundation. It provided funds for the "Back to School Fair" that was held in August at St. Margaret Mary in Neenah. A grant of $750 from the Neenah Rotary Club also supported this project.

A record 1,213 students from Neenah and Menasha attended this year's Back to School Fair. Each student was provided with a backpack filled with school supplies, a Shopko gift card and a gift certificate to Rogan Shoes.

"We had a 42 percent increase in the number of students attending this year over the previous year's fair. We would never have been able to meet the need of providing a backpack and school supplies to this many students without the generous donations of the two grants, many individual donors, The Post-Crescent, and Jansport," said Jean Main, chairperson of the Back to School Fair.

"We expect the need for this project to continue to grow because the effects of the economic downturn are still impacting our communities."

The Neenah-Menasha Emergency Society has been organizing and running the fair since 2006. To learn more about becoming a supporter, visit www.nmesociety.org.

The Neenah-Menasha Emergency Society also has a Homelessness Prevention program and a Shoes for Students program.

The Bemis Co. Foundation donated $2,500 and the Menasha Corp. Foundation donated $1,000 toward the Homelessness Prevention program. This program provides assistance to families in Neenah and Menasha who are struggling with security deposits, rent, mortgages, utilities and other housing-related expenses as the result of an emergent financial situation.

The J.J. Keller Foundation Inc. donated $2,500 toward the Shoes for Students program that provided 689 pairs of new shoes to school-aged children in need last year.

The Neenah-Menasha Emergency Society, founded in 1906, provides emergency financial aid to residents of Neenah and Menasha who struggle to provide for their basic needs. Three additional unrestricted grants were received to continue this mission.

Other grants include $5,000 from the William and Helen Burger Memorial Fund and $1,000 from the Mowry Smith Charitable. The Oshkosh Corporation also donated $2,000 to help those children and families in need.

For more information or to make a contribution, contact Betty Gene Hibner at 920-729-4780 or visit www.nmesociety.org.