South Shore United Methodist Church’s Backpacks on a Mission has changed, but after 13 years it’s still making a difference.
The program provides nutritious, easy-to-prepare food for children in need to take home for the weekend. It initially served a few dozen students at Summerfield Crossings Elementary School and has since expanded to include about a 150 students at six additional elementary schools: Apollo Beach, Collins, Corr, Dawson, Doby and Summerfield.
Once delivered in backpacks, the distribution method was changed in 2021 due to counselor concerns about cross-contamination during the pandemic.
“We started using nonreturnable, T-shirt bags, which we buy in boxes of 1,000 from Sam’s Club in Riverview,” said Connie Bishop, Backpacks on a Mission coordinator since 2014. “Our packing group volunteers fill them with two breakfast items, two lunch items, two dinner entrees and one snack.”…