Anne (Kent) Clemens ’55 lives nears Salem, Oregon. She is one of the co- coordinators of a program called Backpack Buddies that feeds children who are food insecure. She works with a local elementary school where 90% of the students qualify for free or low cost lunches. For some of these children, lunch at school is the only meal they will eat that day. Then, on weekends, they go home to little or no food. Backpack Buddies gives each child in the program with a free bag of food that includes cans of soup, chili/meat, fruits and vegetables, cereal, cheese, yogurt, juice, and crackers.Currently, they feed 50 children every weekend. Teachers report that there is less truancy on Fridays when food is distributed.

The Backpack Buddies Program is run through Anne’s church, Christ the Good Shepard Lutheran in Salem, Oregon. Church volunteers pack and deliver the individual bags of food. The coordinators raise money to cover the costs of food – around $8,000 a year.

This program, says Anne,  is essential to help relieve hunger, which in turn will improve mental and physical health, learning ability, and self-esteem.

For more information, visit: http://christthegoodshep.org.