By Shannon McFarlin WENK/WTPR News Director
Paris, Tenn.—At Tuesday night’s meeting, Paris Special Schools District (PSSD) Board members also heard an update on the district’s Weekend Backpack program from Allyson Palmer.
With the Weekend Backpack program, students who qualify for a free lunch receive a Ziploc bag full of food each Friday for the weekend. Palmer noted that some of the students in the district are nutritionally dependent on the school’s meals and often have very little food to eat over the weekend.
The food in the bag costs $2.85 per bag and includes a container of Ravioli, box of cereal, package of Poptarts, applesauce, peaches, raisins, peanut butter crackers.
According to Palmer, this is the breakdown of bags sent home each week: PreK, 69; Kindergarten, 102; first grade, 91.
Volunteers who regularly help placing all the items into the bags are from Sulphur Well Church of Christ, Paris Rotary, PreK parents, Amy Cathey and her team and PSSD faculty and staff.
Sponsors for the program include Helping Hand Radio Auction, BPU Round-up, local churches, Athena Delphian Charitable Foundation, HCMC and the Paris Rotary Club.
Palmer said plans are to hopefully add second grade to the list of students who can participate in the backpack program.
PSSD Director of Schools Dr. Norma Gerrell said ideally, “We’d like to investigate the possibility of all students having access to the program. It’s a great benefit to our children and the big ones get hungry, just like the little ones.”
Other community partners have approached the district, offering to help, she said, and volunteers and donations are always welcome.
Photo: A sample bag used in the Weekend Backpack program in forefront of photo, while board members listen to reports on the program. (Shannon McFarlin photo).
