The Blessing Bags program is a backpack program in which we supply children in need within the Saltillo/Guntown schools with food items for the weekends while they are not in school. We pack the bags with breakfast, lunch, and snack options. All food selections are non-perishable and “kid friendly”, so that they can be prepared and eaten without adult supervision. We currently provide 78 children with Blessing Bags weekly, and we anticipate that this number will fluctuate due to inflation and changes in the economy. The SJWC also sends home extra food bags when school breaks occur. The total monthly cost of running the Blessing Bags program is roughly $1,650 or approximately $21 per child.
In addition to Blessing Bags, our club also organizes the Shining Stars program, which serves Saltillo/Guntown students as well. This program provides needs at Christmas time. We provide 3 shirts, 3 pairs of pants, 1 jacket/hoodie, underwear, socks, a pair shoes, and a toiletry bag to each child. They also receive “wishlist item(s)” that we budget at $50 so that they are also gifted a toy or other special item that they would enjoy having for Christmas. We ask sponsors to agree to spend $200 to cover the costs of an entire star; however, realistically, the cost has risen above this amount.
For both programs, students are identified by teachers and counselors, so that anonymity is preserved within the club. The counselors are able to get family approval and then we provide help. In the future, we hope to see the Donut Dash catch on in popularity and grow to not only completely support both of these programs, but to also give us an opportunity to expand these programs to provide assistance year-round. This will give us the ability to provide food and clothing assistance to the students with needs in our community.
