Blythewood High to host free shred event

Now that tax season is over, it might be a good time to clean out files at home and dispose of old paperwork in a secure way. Northeast Columbia residents can safely discard personal papers for free Friday, May 26 when Blythewood High School’s Future Business Leaders of America club hosts a community shred event from 9 a.m. to noon.

“Our club has been hosting free shred events twice a year for at least the past five years as a way to give back to the community,” said Ashley Garner, business education instructor at BHS.

The club is partnering with Shred360 on the event. Participants can bring up to three boxes of papers per car. Drivers should use the BHS campus north gate entrance to the football stadium (visitor’s side).

Experts advise shredding old bank statements, credit card bills, utility bills, sales receipts, ATM receipts, pharmacy labels, photocopies of identity documents and documents with personal information when they’re no longer needed to reduce the likelihood of becoming a victim of identity theft.

Garner said the event is free, but the club is asking for donations to raise money to help its members travel to the Future Business Leaders of America national meeting this summer in Atlanta.

The BHS club’s 33 members also raise money each year to buy “build-a-bears” for children at the Shriners’ Hospital and partner with the school’s crotchet club to create blankets for babies in local hospitals’ neonatal intensive care units.

For more information about the shred event or the Future Business Leaders of America club, contact Garner at agarner@richland2.org or (803) 691-4090, ext. 28804.