Backpack & SummerSLAM Programs

 
In our community, 22,000 children are eligible for free or reduced-cost meals through the schools. Two innovative programs—the Backpack Program and SummerSLAM—have been successful in addressing this alarming truth and providing meals for children in need when school doors are closed.
 

Backpack Program
Bags are filled with 5-10 pounds of donated, non-perishable, easy-to-prepare food. A total of 650 packs are distributed to each of the 28 elementary schools participating in the program. The packs are discretely given out on Friday after school to ensure that children, and their families, have nutritious food to eat over the weekend. Generally, each pack includes a can of vegetables, a can of fruit, a can of beans, a protein (either tuna or peanut butter) and a carbohydrate (either bread of pasta). Each child also receives a small snack item, such as a granola bar.
 
Food items needed include:
• Tuna (any size)
• Dry, uncooked pasta
• Chili, soup & beans (garbanzo, kidney, refried or black)
• Peanut butter (creamy) & jams
• Complete boxed meals (mac & cheese, Hamburger Helper, Rice/Pasta Roni, tuna salad kits, etc.)
• Small cans of fruits & vegetables
• Individually wrapped fruit cups & apple sauce (plastic packs)
• Cereal (low-sugar, high-fiber, such as Cheerios)
• Instant oatmeal packets
• Granola/snack bars & Fig Newtons (individually wrapped)
 
Space in bags is limited; small or single-serve items are preferred and allow us to pack more into each bag. As these are also being distributed to young children, we do not include any glass in the bags, so plastic jars and containers are preferred.
 

“Share is about gathering the bounty of the community and sharing it with those less fortunate.” – Andy Costello, Share Volunteer
 
SummerSLAM
The SummerSLAM (Student Learning Active Minds) Program is offered to children grades K-8 during July and August. In 2009, SLAM hosted 520 children and served 11,000 meals at Silver Star and Martin Luther King Elementary Schools.
 
The program provides free breakfast and lunch to homeless and low-income children who are unlikely to receive enough nutritious food at home outside of the school year; it also provides educational enrichment programs, including field trips to Columbia Springs and on-site classes from OMSI. All of this is provided at no cost to the participants. The kids have a daily newspaper, computer classes, art classes, build bridges, play golf and even put on a musical at the end of the program.
 
The program is a partnership with Evergreen and Vancouver Public Schools and WSU Vancouver/”At Home at School” AHAS Program. Activities are led by students pursuing their masters in teaching degree at WSU Vancouver, as part of the AHAS Program. Additionally, many community volunteers donate their time to provide their own areas of expertise in the arts, languages and sciences.
 
To support our Children’s Hunger Initiative, contact Tarinn Smith, Hunger Response Director, at (360) 695-7658 ext. 3304.

© Copyright 2010 Share