Jennifer Hudson and Sister Give Back to Chicago Students In Need

Jennifer Hudson and her sister, Julia Hudson, held their Annual Hatch Day Celebration on Aug. 14, where they provided more than 8, 100 Chicago students in need with school supplies.

Held at the Ray & Joan Kroc Corps Community Center in Chicago, thousands of children and their parents lined up to receive the school supplies that they hadn’t yet been able to check off of their back-to-school lists.

“Our goal each year is very simple,” Hudson said in a press release. “We want these kids to know we are here for them and paying attention to their needs. If one child walks away with that feeling, then we’ve been successful. Chicago needs positive support more than ever and we hope that by doing this, we can encourage the next generation to keep on in that direction.”

The annual “Hatch Day” is held in honor of Julia’s son and Jennifer’s late nephew, Julian D. King, who would have been 13 years-old on the day of this year’s event.

The give back event provides students with everything they need to get a healthy head-start in school including scissors, calculators, notebooks, pencils, pens, paper, protractors, binders, music, entertainment, and treats.

“Going to school has never been more expensive,” Julia said. “We want our community’s children to have everything they need in order to start the school year out right and that’s what we aim to do every year we host Hatch Day in Julian’s honor.”