By Rebecca Gaunt

A normally ordinary parking lot at Bells Ferry Plaza in Marietta was transformed into a playground for the last day of summer vacation and for the sixth annual Back 2 School Giveaway, sponsored by Inspired By Lewis.

The Sunday event was more than an end-of-summer celebration. It also provided backpacks and school supplies at a time when soaring prices are hitting people hard in their wallets.

Corey Lewis, a Sprayberry High School alum, is the owner of Inspired By Lewis where his mission is to “provide enrichment to socially challenged youth by promoting positive character development, self-awareness, and life skills that will cultivate our next generation of innovative leaders.”

(Click photos to enlarge — all photos by Rebecca Gaunt)

He provides after-school mentoring and summer camp opportunities. He also does public speaking events.

Lewis gained national attention in 2018, when a woman followed him home and called 911 because he was a Black man with two white children in his care at a Subway restaurant. The local community rallied to show him support.

Despite the heat climbing into the 90s, excited children raced up the steps of the inflated slide, and the bouncy castle shook as shouts of “Will you be my friend?” filtered out to the parking lot.

The Crazy Goat Girls set up a petting zoo next to their handmade goat soap booth, where their Nigerian Dwarf goats, Brownie, Rosie, and Cupcake, were a hit.

Jazzy Spirits-Mobile Bartending served mocktails with appropriately themed names like Berry Book Smart, Peachy Substitute Teacher, and Blue Raspberry Recess Refresher.

(Click photos to enlarge — all photos by Rebecca Gaunt)

Pelican’s Snoballs truck opened its window just as a brief rain started to fall, but that wasn’t enough to dissuade the people standing in line. May’s Munch Truck also had a steady stream of hungry kids.

Some attendees relieved their back-to-school tension by getting a free massage from Staycation Mobile Massage. Others escaped the heat inside of the Rich & Royal Game Truck.

Another huge draw was the promise of free haircuts and silk presses at Blessed Up Barber Shop, which maintained a steady stream of students in the chairs and a line outside that was blessed to be in the shade.

To learn more about Inspired by Lewis, check out the website here.