To those who can make ends meet, the annual shopping trip for school supplies presents more of an annoyance than a real barrier.

But there are many families who struggle — a tally that grows with every downward tick of the economic scale. And for them, the back-to-school rush means packing off their children to class with only a fraction of what they need for their studies.

For the kids, it means the embarrassment of borrowing from friends or confessing to the teacher — again — that they've come up short.

Even with all the funding shortages our public schools face, this should not be an insurmountable hurdle for a state with a culture of generosity like Hawai'i's.

Numerous social service agencies (Catholic Charities Hawai'i, to name only one) make it a practice of taking donations of school supplies. It's a favorite project of numerous nonprofit organizations as well, some of which have already delivered the supplies to selected schools.

But although most students are already back at their desks, the collections will continue for weeks, so there's still ample time for businesses and individuals to pitch in.

Many schools have their supply lists posted on their Web sites (for a directory of public school sites, go to: 165.248.6.166/data/schoollist .asp). So all anyone has to do is download the list (or call the school for one) and head for the store, dropping off the goodies on the way home.

It's such a satisfying way to fulfill a student's simple wish, and it's something most Isle residents can do, in large and small ways.

All of our students deserve the tools for success.