WEST MEMPHIS, Ark. — Parents are hitting Mid-South stores for tax-free back-to-school deals. In Arkansas, clothes and school supplies will be tax exempt this weekend.
West Memphis High School student Tamara Washington is not expecting her parents to buy her school supplies this year. She got a job this summer to help pay for them herself.
“I’ve been helping my parents out,” she said. “I’ve been wanting to make them proud of me.”
That burden is going to be a little lighter this weekend as Arkansas’ tax-free holiday begins Saturday.
Tamara’s dad, Timmy Washington, said it is a sale they wait for all summer.
“A lot of people don’t have … the extra money to provide for their kids,” he said.
While there are not many options of stores to find school supplies in West Memphis, school officials such as West Memphis School District Assistant Superintendent Bill Cook said big retailers such as Walmart are good about working with them to get kids what they need.
“They’ve got a list there,” he said. “So, when they walk in and say, ‘Hey. We’re going to Faulk Elementary. What do we need?’ Well, here it is. Shop around and get it.”
Tamara said it is a weekend she is grateful for and one she hopes will help parents who may otherwise not have the means to send their children to school prepared.
“Some kids don’t even have shoes,” she said. “That bothers me, but I’m thanking God you’ve got stores like these to come help out.”
