A recent donation to the Gilmer Community Food Pantry ensures that its Sack Pack program for children will continue through the current school year.
The Gilmer Optimist Club presented $14,000 in proceeds raised from a June auction/raffle fundraiser at Talking Rock vineyard and winery Chateau Meichtry, as well as an added contribution, to the food pantry last week.
“One generous event attendee donated an additional $2,500 which brought the total to over $16,000,” noted Gilmer Optimist Rebecca Harrell.
Administered by food pantry volunteers in cooperation with the local school system, Sack Pack reaches more than 300 children weekly in an average school year.
The Optimist Club is one of two groups that fund the program, said Trent Sanford, the club’s president.
“Our contribution is currently just over 60 percent of the funds donated. While our club is only eight years old, we are over 80 active members strong and always looking for new members who want to improve the lives of children, youth and local families while building long lasting friendships,” he added.
“Our other major efforts include Christmas Bags of Jolly for children in foster care, the Stuff the Bus school supply drive, childhood wellness efforts, oratorical and essay scholarship programs and, most recently, the Class of 2020 recognition project.”
With the weekly Sack Pack effort, food pantry volunteers supply and deliver bags of nonperishable food to the county’s three elementary schools and Head Start. The bags, which usually contain easily preparable packaged foods like canned pasta, mac and cheese cups and snacks, are sent home with children to last through the weekend.
“The schools determine who needs it and they give us the numbers. We pack them on Tuesdays and deliver to the schools so they can give them to the kids to take home on Fridays.,” said Allen Triebel, the food pantry’s executive director. “Last year, we had 352 kids. We could have closer to 400 this year.”
The program continued through the summer break, Triebel noted.
“We had drivers who are Sack Pack volunteers and we delivered to remote sites while the schools were closed, but we haven’t been (serving) as many kids as we do during the school year,” he said. “We’ve also been giving Sack Pack food to any families with kids who come to the pantry on Wednesdays. We’ve been doing that 7 out of the 10 weeks.”
The Optimist Club’s donation will allow the food pantry to purchase food for the program, as well as some additional nonfood items for the students who receive Sack Packs this year. Items that have been considered include protective facemasks and individual bottles of hand sanitizer, Triebel noted.
Now that school is back in session, the food pantry is putting out a call for additional volunteers to help deliver the Sack Packs. “They would drive from our warehouse to whichever school they get assigned once a month. It would be a commitment of one Tuesday a month and the person would need to be able to pick up a 40-pound box and carry it from their car,” Triebel said.
The pantry is also in need of a few more volunteers who can help unload and stock food that’s delivered to the warehouse facility located at 5273 Highway 52 East.
“We have a forklift to move it from the truck and then we pick up the boxes and put them on shelves. We are all in our 60s and 70s and we only have three people doing it right now. Every Tuesday is our delivery day and it would be for two or three hours,” Triebel said.
Anyone interested in volunteering for Sack Pack delivery or helping unload food and stock shelves can reach Triebel at the Gilmer Community Food Pantry, 706-273-3663, Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday mornings.