Blessings in a backpack

PReventing Child hunger

Blessings in a Backpack provides 35 school year weekends worth of food, including, easy-to-prepare, ready-to-eat foods for elementary school children who qualify for the federal Free and Reduced Price Meal Program. Our goal is to address the risks of hunger, which include:
  • weakened immune systems,
  • Lower IQ
  • Shorter attention spans
  • Lower Academic Achievement
Our community’s children are fed during the school week by federal government programs, but we want to make sure they’re getting nutritional meals over the weekend, too.  Hunger doesn’t take weekends off! Volunteers spend Wednesdays at First Baptist Church packing the food (due to COVID-19 safety precautions) and then deliver the packages to the schools for discreet placement in student lockers. Volunteers are always welcome! The purchase, preparation and distribution of food is a shared ecumenical effort between these area churches:  Luther Memorial, Sugar Creek Lutheran, Faith Baptist, Christ Episcopal, and Delavan United Church of Christ (Congregational). At the start of the 2021 school year, there were 105 students, from Turtle Creek Elementary and Darien Elementary, enrolled in the program.

Volunteer with us!

Ruth H. serves as the UCC’s organizing committee representative – contact the Church Office if you’d like to help fill those backpacks!