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Every school year, more than 1,600 at-risk children in the Ozarks receive food through our Weekend Backpack Program. After classes were canceled, we worked closely with our school partners to ensure that these children would continue to receive weekend meals.

This food is absolutely critical for children who may not get enough to eat on the weekends. Each food bag consists of two breakfasts, two lunches, two dinners, snacks and beverages. Unfortunately, because of interruptions in the supply chain, the food items are difficult to find right now. And when we are able to find them, the price of the food has nearly doubled. Your support is needed now more than ever.

Much of the funding for this program comes from Hungerthon, our annual radiothon with iHeartRadio. The event helps sponsor more than 400 children with weekend meals for an entire school year. This year’s event will be critical to make sure we can continue providing the food these kids depend on. We’re currently planning the September event, and we know it will look different than it has in the past. Contact Jennifer Sickinger at 417-865-3411 or jsickinger@ozarksfoodharvest.org to learn how you can sponsor a child or host a fundraiser with your office or church.

We’re working hard to make sure these food bags are available for the 2020-2021 school year, but we need your help to make that happen.

Please consider making a gift to the Weekend Backpack Program. For just $360, you can help provide a full school year of weekend meals to an at-risk child.

To donate, visit ozarksfoodharvest.org/donate and choose the “Weekend Backpack Program” designation from the dropdown menu. Consider turning this into a monthly gift to offer even more support for local kids. Thank you for caring for children in the Ozarks!