It’s been 12 years since Blessings in a Backpack started serving children in Oswego County on the shores of Lake Erie in northwestern New York state. The Fulton and Oswego programs split in 2016, and shortly after that, Craig and Susan Traub started filling in for the leadership team at Fulton. The once booming town has faced an economic downturn since a Nestlé plant closed and Miller Brewing ended its operations.  

Craig, the food service director at a local college, was tapped to help the Blessings program find a way to purchase food in the quantities the program needed each week. In 2018, long-time volunteer and new Blessings program coordinator Craig worked out a partnership with the local Save-A-Lot store, one that continues to this day. The locally owned store, part of a national chain of discount grocery stores, could order the quantity of food needed to pack bags for Fulton students each week.  

Since Craig and Susan Traub took over the program, the number of students has doubled to 280. The Traubs have made it a mission to increase community awareness of the Blessings program—and the need for weekend food when 22% of the children in the school district live below the poverty level. Susan said many families couch surf with friends and family. With aging housing units, Craig says fires are common in Fulton—and many families have been displaced. Susan said the poverty rate is similar to that of the urban areas of New York City.*  

Craig and Susan speak to community groups and have been the beneficiary of several events held in the community. The community has been very generous—weekly packing events bring in different teams of volunteers each week to pack food bags for the Blessings kids. After speaking at one of the town’s Rotary Clubs, Craig had a conversation that led to a long-time partnership with the local bus company. The Golden Sun bus company sends two buses to the church each Tuesday, where food is packed each Saturday. Food is loaded onto the empty buses and then delivered to schools on both sides of the Oswego River.  

The relationship was crucial during the COVID-19 pandemic when the bus company picked up food and delivered it directly to the homes of Blessings kids. That distribution system in 2020 allowed Blessings kids to continue to receive a bag of food each week, even though they weren’t in school.  

Save-a-Lot also set up a cash donation site at their registers. Shoppers could donate $1 to the Blessings program as they checked out. The local Dollar Tree also ran a donation drive several times a year. Shoppers would see needed items at a check-out display and could purchase items packed in the Blessings bag. This year, over 4000 items were donated by Dollar Tree shoppers. 

It’s time for the Traubs to retire—Craig says this time for good! Using a resource in the Blessings in a Backpack PC Toolkit, they have broken down their many duties and recruited community volunteers to manage various aspects of the program—from food logistics to volunteer coordination and community engagement. Susan says fundraising is tricky, but they have been so lucky to receive community support from a poverty-stricken town that they are optimistic. However, they worry about the future of programs that provide breakfast and lunch to school-age children.  

As for the Traubs—when asked what they will do with their free time—Susan chuckles and says she is hoping they will get around to cleaning the garage.  

Good luck with that, Susan and Craig! Thank you from the bottom of our backpacks on behalf of the many children who have benefited from your dedication! 

*According to robinhood.com, in 2023, the overall poverty rate in New York City reached 25%, nearly double the national average.