Program feeds Will County students to fight food insecurity

A Plainfield-based nonprofit feeds hundreds of Will County students each weekend through a donation-funded backpack program.

The program is called Bags of Hope, and it serves students in Bolingbrook, Joliet, Lockport, Plainfield and Romeoville, said Lana Howe, president and founder of the organization.

“We’re not a food pantry. We’re a backpack program,” Howe said. “Kids don’t go to food pantries; they don’t have access. That’s where we step in and get the food to the kids.”

It’s hugely instrumental in supporting our families that are struggling to put food on the table. ... What Bags of Hope does is provide nourishing food for the weekend.”

—  Tim Albores, director of student services for high school and ED/alternative programs at District 202 in Plainfield

Howe said she volunteered with another backpack program from 2009 to 2015. In January 2016, she founded Bags of Hope, which is now housed at Plainfield Academy.

How the backpack program works

On Mondays and Tuesdays, students in Plainfield Academy’s Post Secondary Transition and Educational Program sort and pack the food.

Students in the P-STEP program are 18 to 22 years old and learning “skills needed to obtain and maintain community employment and increase independent-living skills through community-based experiences,” according to the Plainfield Academy website.

On Wednesday afternoons, Bag of Hope volunteers deliver the food to schools, where staff distributes the food to students participating in the program.

“Not only are we helping to feed kids, we are also helping young adults learn life skills,” Howe said.

Last week, Bags of Hope gave away more than 110 bags of food.

“During the pandemic, we gave out more than 500 bags a week,” Howe said.

Howe said the number of students who receive backpacks typically are lowest at the beginning of the school year and peak around Thanksgiving with about 200 bags a week.

Backpacks contains protein, pasta, cereal, fruits, vegetables and even snacks, Howe said, because some classrooms allow children to bring snacks.

“We’ve had many teachers say some of their students do not have snacks,” Howe said. “So we make sure we provide snacks. They can take it from the bag and take it to the school and not feel left out.”

Howe said each child in a family may receive a backpack.

“It can stretch through the week. There’s a lot of food in that bag, especially if you have more than one child in the program,” she said. “Even if it’s two kids, that’s two pounds of pasta. Everything is doubled. It’s a lot of food.”

The food is canned or individually packaged; nothing is jarred to guard against breakage. Food items are “as kid-friendly as possible” while still being nutritious, Howe said. The goal is for students to arrive at school on Monday with “full tummies,” she said.

“It’s been proven that kids, if they go to school with empty tummies, can’t focus,” Howe said. “Their grades are down, their test scores are down.”

Combatting food insecurity

Tim Albores, director of student services for high school and ED/alternative programs in Plainfield School District 202, said Bags of Hope moved to Plainfield Academy in the summer of 2020.

He learned of another school that offered a similar program for its students. As staff discussed the idea, they realized the program offered P-STEP students “a real workforce experience,” Albores said.

He said those involved with Bags of Hope are “wonderful human beings.”

“It’s hugely instrumental in supporting our families that are struggling to put food on the table,” Albores said. “Just like any other community, we have families that are either underemployed or unemployed. And while they may get meals at school during the week, it’s a struggle on the weekend. And what Bags of Hope does is provide nourishing food for the weekend.”

Some backpack recipients are homeless.

“They are out there, and it’s very sad,” Howe said. “There is a need right here under our noses.”

Families can sign up separately for a Thanksgiving dinner and/or a Christmas Breakfast Box. Volunteers deliver the boxes directly to the families.

Bags of Hope accepts donations of both food and money. It always needs more volunteers and people willing to run food drives.

Howe said she wishes the need for the program would vanish, but she feels that won’t happen.

“It’s heartbreaking. But it’s reality,” Howe said. “We’ve grown, and we’ve come a long way. I think we’re just going to continue to grow.”

Northern Illinois Food Bank’s backpack program

Joliet Public Schools District 86 participates in a similar backpack program through the Northern Illinois Food Bank, District 86 spokesperson Sandy Zalewski said.

Five District 86 elementary schools currently participate, although Zalewski said she expects the number of schools will increase to as high as nine.

The food bank delivers nonperishable food in little grocery bags on Fridays, and the schools put the bags right into students’ backpacks, Zalewski said.

The backpacks are on wheels because “sometimes the food is heavy for the kids,” Zalewski said.

The Northern Illinois Food Bank is funded with private donations, according to its website.

For information about Bags of Hope, visit boh2016.org.

Inside a Bag of Hope backpack

• 2 cans of vegetables

• 2 cans of soup

• 1 pound of pasta

• 2 boxes of macaroni and cheese

• Canned fruit or snack packs of applesauce

• 3 packages of ramen noodles

• Bag of cereal

• 4 to 5 snacks, such as granola bars, cookies, potato chips, fruit bars

• Microwaveable popcorn

• Peanut butter

• Canned chicken or tuna

Inside the box of a Bags of Hope Thanksgiving dinner

• Turkey

• Fresh onions

• Fresh celery

• Fresh cranberries (when possible)

• Green beans

• Biscuits

• Gravy

• Bread

• Pie

Inside the Bags of Hope Christmas Breakfast Box

• Eggs

• Bacon

• Sausage

• Biscuits and gravy

• Cookies and milk for Santa

• Fresh produce in season

• Hot cocoa

• Marshmallows

• Whipped cream

• Orange juice