SCRANTON, LACKAWANNA CO. (WOLF) — With the school year approaching, families are making the most of their final days of summer.

At Novembrino Park in Scranton, the University of Scranton’s F.I.R.S.T. Program teamed up with Friends of the Poor and Catherine McAuley Center for its second Family Fun Day.

The event provided games, activities, back-to-school supplies, and resources for local children and families, while giving first-year students a chance to give back to the community.

University of Scranton student Matthew Millevoi explained what the F.I.R.S.T. Program is and its mission.

“We’re with the University of Scranton Center for Service and Social Justice. And this is our F.I.R.S.T. program, which stands for First Years Involved in Reflective Service Together. It’s an opportunity for 40 incoming freshmen to come move in early and help and provide service to the nearby area. We have eight different service sites that we go throughout the week,” said Millevoi.

“It’s amazing. It’s something that is instilled in our Jesuit values at the University of Scranton. So, there are so many different opportunities through campus ministry and the Center for Service and Social Justice, where anybody can sign up and give any sort of time to give back to the community,” said Millevoi.

The event gave families an opportunity to prepare for the new school year while connecting with local organizations. Volunteer Manager at Friends of the Poor and Catherine McAuley Center, Ann Montoro-Williams, shared what else the day had to offer.

“We have school supplies and free snacks and free food. There’s also games for the kids to play, and they get tickets so that they can win prizes,” said Montoro-Williams.

“We have the City of Scranton here. We have Pennsylvania American Water, Friends of the Poor and Catherine McAuley Center is here, CANPACK. We also want to say thank you to Affordable PA, who made a donation so that we could provide some stuff here,” said Montoro-Williams.

Local Scranton student, Jameson Gilbertson-Lubianetsky, starts his first day of school Wednesday and said he was able to find a much-needed school supply for one of his classes.

“I got a lot of school supplies. I am grateful that they had all of this, because I didn’t have a calculator, but they had them here. So now I got a calculator for my Algebra One Keystone Class in eighth grade,” said Gilbertson-Lubianetsky.

University of Scranton student Kate Vyzaniaris shared what giving back to the community means to her, and how the event benefits everyone involved.

“I’m so grateful to be able to do this because we always talk about that not only do we get to give back to the community, but the community gets to give back to us all at the same time. So, it’s really cool to just all come together in events like these,” said Vyzaniaris.

Organizers said hundreds attended this year’s Family Fun Day, marking a larger turnout than last year’s.