The Summer Backpack Buddy Program will be hosting its sixth annual Community Packing Day on Saturday, June 1 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Teays Valley Church of the Nazarene to pack boxes of food for students during the summer.
The Summer Backpack Buddy Program was created to empower communities and to provide support to students during the summer. The program assists at-risk students by mailing food to them throughout the summer to those who have a signed enrollment form by a parent or guardian through their schools.
The summer program provides a variety of food to the program participants such as fruit, vegetables, pasta, oatmeal, and cereal bars. Food backpacks are customized by family size and will start 2 weeks after the last day of school and will continue bi-weekly until school starts.
The Putnam County Community Packing Day is an event where hundreds of community members come together to pack all of the boxes that are going to be shipped during the summer. Mountaineer Mascot and Putnam County native, Timmy Eads will be participating in the Packing Day this year.
Since the creation of the Summer Program in 2013, 10,453 boxes have been mailed out to 3,267students. The program began with helping students in three schools in Putnam County and has expanded to all schools in Putnam County. In addition to the Putnam Program, the Summer Program has also expanded to Boone and Kanawha counties.
Doug Erwin, the director of the Backpack Buddy said that it is rewarding to see the community come together for the cause.
“With mixed emotions we are looking forward to our biggest year yet. While we are sad to see the incredible need in Putnam County, we are absolutely thrilled to be able to help. We are so blessed to have the incredible support of the community. Without this support, we would not be able to support the students in need. Backpack Buddy is truly a community effort, a community we are so blessed to be a part of.”
In the future, Backpack Buddy is hoping to expand the program to provide support to more schools during the summer. Until then, the program will continue to keep the existing summer programs alive and fighting childhood hunger.
The event is free and has no age limit for volunteers. Backpack Buddy asks that volunteers park at the Chapman Funeral Home parking area next to the Teays Valley Church of the Nazarene.
For more information about the program or getting involved, contact Doug at doug@backpackbuddy.org.
