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On behalf of Backpacks on a Mission, South Shore United Methodist Church, I want to take this opportunity to thank WalMart Store 6968 for the generous grant that was awarded to this ministry in September, 2018.
Backpacks on a Mission began at South Shore United Methodist Church six years ago. At that time, we had one Elementary school and 26 children that we provided nutritious easy to prepare food for weekly during the school year. Today we are serving 85 children in three local Elementary schools.
Scripture teaches us that there must be a connection between what we believe and how we live out those beliefs in the world. We do this by sending people into the community and world to be the hands and feet of Jesus by feeding the hungry, healing the sick, sheltering the homeless, welcoming the stranger and helping God’s children everywhere.
With this, we are sent to meet the needs of hungry area children by providing them with nutritious and easy-to-prepare food to take home on the weekends when other resources are not available.
It's difficult to believe when we drive through our neighborhoods in our community that there are many families living below the poverty line who find it difficult to feed their children over the weekend. A good education is vital for these children, not only to break the cycle of poverty but enrich their lives, enrich their families and enrich their community.
Our food comes from food drives, donations and grants such as this one.
This year when we met with the counselors, they asked if travel size hygiene items could be given as well. Our goal is to provide these items at least every other month into their backpacks. Your generous awarded grant will help that goal become a reality.
We partner with three community Elementary schools where the counselors obtain permission slips from the parents/guardians of children in need. We have several teams within this ministry that perform important tasks throughout the school year.
Preparing menus, ordering packaged food, setting the food out according to menus and schools, packing the backpacks and then delivering the filled backpacks to the schools are the different tasks that we do on a weekly basis during the school year. While we order the packaged food on a monthly basis, the packing is done on a weekly basis. When there are school breaks, we pack in addition for the week or weeks that the children will not be in school.
We have received many responses from the children and their parents on how much they appreciate what we are doing for them.
Once again, I want to thank you for your generous grant that was awarded to Backpacks on a Mission at South Shore United Methodist Church.
Connie Bishop
Coordinator, Backpacks on a Mission South Shore United Methodist Church
Contact Connie at: connie.bishop01@gmail.com