Kids carry the Blessings tradition at Knox College

As you may know, Blessings in a Backpack started with an apple. Our founder, Missy Hammerstrom, was volunteering at an elementary school in Louisville and was eating lunch when a little girl asked for her apple. Missy asked why.

The girl said, “I’m taking it home so I can eat it this weekend.”

And from that, Missy Hammerstrom got to work, creating a program to keep kids full on the weekend.

Today, this sentiment of service is rooted deep in the Blessings in a Backpack program in Galesburg, Illinois. In 2010, a group of students at the nearby Knox College saw the need in their community – a community with 68% of its school-aged children classified as “low-income.”

By partnering with members of the community and their local First Presbyterian Church, the Galesburg Blessings program grew. Each week, students from Knox College were bussed to the church to pack bags of food alongside their professors and other community members. Today, they serve approximately 450 children every Friday afternoon.

But these students do more than give their time. Even though many are unable to donate directly, they can contribute in a unique way. Students at Knox College can donate their meal points – and Knox College uses them to send fresh apples to pack each week.

Knox College students are an incredible picture of kids serving kids – and a beautiful embodiment of the tradition of Blessings in a Backpack and its impact on local communities.