February 2016: PRESENTLY SERVING 254 CHILDREN EACH WEEKEND!
August Newsletter:
Another school year's gone, and another one is about to begin.
This is the amount of food bags given out by Lukes's Backpack for the school year of 2014-2015.
Woodstock 3481 bags distributed
Mt. Jackson 2327 bags
Strasburg 2225 bags
TOTAL bags distributed from our Luke's Backpack Ministry
8033 bags OR 48,198 meals
What about summer backpacks? Yes, we did provide some this summer. Any Luke's Backpack kid that went to summer school had an opportunity to bring a bag home. We also provided food to many of the students who attended the Mt. Olive UMC Enrichment program this summer. We distributed 148 bags for a total of 888 meals this summer. Many thanks to the adults at Shen-Paco for volunteering to pack our summer bags.
A big thank you is in order! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to all who have donated food and/or money to Luke's Backpack. First off, we couldn't do this without the food. As you can see, Shenandoah County is definitely feeding their kids. You are a blessing to us and especially these students.
Secondly, a HUGE thank you to all of our volunteers. You, too, are a blessing. Getting all of those bags packed and delivered can be quite an operation!
To our PACKERS, thank you for coming in and packing bags-some of you come a couple of times a month! Thank you for being willing to help out when a site oordinator sends out a "help needed" email. We appreciate you coming in, rolling up your sleeves, and getting to work. Packing is a lot of fun, but it can also be sweaty work.
To our DELIVERERS, thank you for your time and muscle. We appreciate how you faithfully deliver this food each and every week to the schools.
And speaking of muscle, thank you to those who've helped haul food to our sites. Feeding over 200 kids a week takes a lot of food. A special shout out to our Strasburg volunteers who've met us at Costco and Aldi's with big trucks to transport food this year. Our backs and car shocks thank you. (We're always looking for volunteers with trucks...)
Thirdly, thank you to each school in Shenandoah County. We appreciate how staff and administrators work together to identify needy students and then make sure they get the food each week.
Lastly, I want to thank:
-Susan Fleming/Ann Grisdale, Central site coordinators
-Carolyn Long/Tiffany Dellinger/Pastor Matthew and Heather Diehl, Mt. Jackson site coordinators/advisors
-Kendra Smith, Strasburg site coordinator
I can't thank you enough for all of your (and your families' too) time, muscle, and sweat that goes into heading your Luke's Backpack site. You make your job seem easy, but I know better! Each and every week you do what it takes to make sure the kids get food on the weekends. I appreciate your hard work and your dedication to these students. It's a priviledge watching you live out your faith to our Lord in this ministry.
I hope everyone is ready to begin again. September is almost here. We need you. Once schools give us numbers of bags needed, we'll begin immediately. Be on the lookout for emails from your site coordinators sometime in September.
Thanks again and God's Peace,
Leslie Heird
Luke's Backpack Director
Another school year's gone, and another one is about to begin.
This is the amount of food bags given out by Lukes's Backpack for the school year of 2014-2015.
Woodstock 3481 bags distributed
Mt. Jackson 2327 bags
Strasburg 2225 bags
TOTAL bags distributed from our Luke's Backpack Ministry
8033 bags OR 48,198 meals
What about summer backpacks? Yes, we did provide some this summer. Any Luke's Backpack kid that went to summer school had an opportunity to bring a bag home. We also provided food to many of the students who attended the Mt. Olive UMC Enrichment program this summer. We distributed 148 bags for a total of 888 meals this summer. Many thanks to the adults at Shen-Paco for volunteering to pack our summer bags.
A big thank you is in order! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to all who have donated food and/or money to Luke's Backpack. First off, we couldn't do this without the food. As you can see, Shenandoah County is definitely feeding their kids. You are a blessing to us and especially these students.
Secondly, a HUGE thank you to all of our volunteers. You, too, are a blessing. Getting all of those bags packed and delivered can be quite an operation!
To our PACKERS, thank you for coming in and packing bags-some of you come a couple of times a month! Thank you for being willing to help out when a site oordinator sends out a "help needed" email. We appreciate you coming in, rolling up your sleeves, and getting to work. Packing is a lot of fun, but it can also be sweaty work.
To our DELIVERERS, thank you for your time and muscle. We appreciate how you faithfully deliver this food each and every week to the schools.
And speaking of muscle, thank you to those who've helped haul food to our sites. Feeding over 200 kids a week takes a lot of food. A special shout out to our Strasburg volunteers who've met us at Costco and Aldi's with big trucks to transport food this year. Our backs and car shocks thank you. (We're always looking for volunteers with trucks...)
Thirdly, thank you to each school in Shenandoah County. We appreciate how staff and administrators work together to identify needy students and then make sure they get the food each week.
Lastly, I want to thank:
-Susan Fleming/Ann Grisdale, Central site coordinators
-Carolyn Long/Tiffany Dellinger/Pastor Matthew and Heather Diehl, Mt. Jackson site coordinators/advisors
-Kendra Smith, Strasburg site coordinator
I can't thank you enough for all of your (and your families' too) time, muscle, and sweat that goes into heading your Luke's Backpack site. You make your job seem easy, but I know better! Each and every week you do what it takes to make sure the kids get food on the weekends. I appreciate your hard work and your dedication to these students. It's a priviledge watching you live out your faith to our Lord in this ministry.
I hope everyone is ready to begin again. September is almost here. We need you. Once schools give us numbers of bags needed, we'll begin immediately. Be on the lookout for emails from your site coordinators sometime in September.
Thanks again and God's Peace,
Leslie Heird
Luke's Backpack Director
The Results:
Here are the amount of bags given out by Lukes's Backpack for the school year of 2014-2015.
Woodstock 3481 bags distributed
Mt. Jackson 2327 bags
Strasburg 2225 bags
TOTAL bags distributed from our Luke's Backpack Ministry
8033 bags OR 48,198 meals
Presently serving 225 students each week !
*****Slideshow of volunteers packing the backpacks
Background
Many families in Shenandoah County struggle daily to provide healthy meals for their children. Statistics show over 40% of the student population in our county qualify for free or reduced lunches and breakfasts. Luke’s Backpack, a free ministry coordinated by Shenandoah Valley Lutheran Ministries, helps by providing weekend meals to the school aged children of many of these families throughout the school year.
How It Works
Who Can Participate
LUKE’S Backpack provides backpacks to students who are identified by their school’s administration as being at risk for not having access to healthy meals throughout the weekend. Parents who feel their family may qualify for this program should contact their school’s office to inquire about enrolling their child(ren). Program participation will be kept confidential. A parent or guardian must return a signed permission form for their child to participate which can be obtained from their school
Program Partners and Supporters
LUKE’S Backpack, sponsored by SVLM, in partnership with Shenandoah County Public Schools, is supported by churches, civic organizations, businesses and individuals throughout Shenandoah County. We accept donations of single serving size nonperishable food items(See food list tab) and monetary donations. Monetary donations (make checks payable to Shenandoah Valley Lutheran Ministries, Inc.) allow us to purchase needed food and backpacks for each distribution site.