Purim Food Drive: FORKids Program
Sunday, March 24, 1:00 pm
In Person - bring to the Purim Party
Every year for Purim, TBH gathers food for the Thurston County Food Bank. Anna-Min at the Thurston County Food Bank has specifically asked TBH to focus on the following items to put into the bags for the FORKids program: (1) fruit cups, (2) fruit pouches or the fruit squeeze items, and (3) oatmeal or granola bars. These will be used in the FORKids program which provides weekly food bags for kids in need in elementary schools and Head Start programs. The Thurston County Food Bank will also accept other donations as well as the items listed.
Here is a little background about the FORKids food program. The FORKids program began, I believe in 2007, to provide free lunches to kids in elementary schools at North Thurston School District, Olympia School District, and Tumwater School District, as well as to Head Start programs The first faith community that volunteered to make the bags was TBH, and we have done it regularly since then except during Covid when all the faith communities were shut down. This school year, TBH started bagging again, and on March 5, in an hour and half, TBH volunteers filled three pallets full of 72 boxes totaling 522 bags In 2023, the Thurston County Food Bank distributed 48,227 FORKids bags total to the elementary schools in Thurston County, about 1300 students per week. So far in 2024, Anna-Min indicates the Food Bank has distributed 16,700 bags total, about 1860 students per week to 34 different schools and Head Start programs. The need has been growing
TBH once a month on the first Tuesday of each month from 4:00-6:00 p.m. could always use more volunteers, including children and grandparents and parents and friends who are not TBH members. If you have any questions, feel free to call either Bernie Friedman at __ or Elie Halpern at 360-878-3679 for more information.
