In just a couple short weeks, the children of Lawrence County will head back to school, some for the first time as kindergarteners, and some for the last as high school seniors.

For low-income families or families with multiple children, buying all the needed school supplies and clothing can often times cause a great financial stress.

To help ease the burden just a bit, Ohio will continue its tradition of offering a sales tax holiday, which begins today and runs through Sunday.

During this tax holiday, certain clothing items and school supplies are exempt from sales tax. Examples of these tax exempt items would be clothing priced at $75 per item or less; school supplies priced at $20 per item or less; and school instructional materials priced at $20 or less.

As always, shoppers should remain aware of return policies before items are bought, exclusions and limitations of an offer or possible rain checks.

Also on Saturday, Tools 4 School, hosted by St. Paul Lutheran Church, will give out hundreds of backpacks filled with school supplies to those in need. And on Tuesday, South Point Community Churches will host a Backpack Bash at South Point Park.

Events like these are vital for the community and ensure all school-aged children have a chance to succeed regardless of his or her economic background.