At St. Matthews Lutheran Church, we have always had a penchant for trying to provide food to those in need. Micah’s Backpack addresses the need of children identified by their guidance counselors or principals as being food insecure. Through them, we learned that some of these children could not wait to get back to school on Mondays as that is where they would get a good breakfast. Children whose tummies are empty are not poised to focus on learning. Many of these children live in homes where parents work on the weekends. We provide a sack of food that the children can prepare for themselves using a can opener and a microwave. The children pick up the food on Friday as they leave school and have enough to eat for the weekend, with some left to share with their siblings. The children are anonymous to us, but we have been told just how these children “light up, full of smiles as they ‘pick up their snacks’” for the weekend. We currently support two elementary schools in the area. Our goal is to be able to provide for every student who is identified to us as needing it.

micahs backpack letter

We focus on providing as much nutrition as possible as we pack these items:

  • Pasta in a can
  • Macaroni and Cheese
  • Tuna
  • Peanut Butter
  • Fruit cups
  • Oatmeal
  • Cereal
  • Milk
  • Soup
  • Popcorn
  • Granola Bars
  • Fruit Snacks and an assorted snack in single serve portions
Micah 6:8

“Act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God.”

If this sounds like something you would like to be a part of, you certainly can. We are always looking for volunteers to help us with shopping for food, donating food items, packing up the bags or donating funds to purchase food. If you would like to donate, you can rest assured that every dollar donated to this ministry will go directly to feeding hungry children. You can donate at this website and select Micah’s Backpack as the ministry you wish to support. All this we ask in Jesus’ name, for the children.

We pack food for the children every Wednesday at 4:30 pm at Dearing Chapel when school is in session. We have begun offering a community meal at 5:30 pm after our packing session. You are welcome to join us for that also. Come and be blessed as you are a blessing to others.