Volunteers gather at Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe High School to pack canvas bags filled with snacks and microwavable meals for students at Cloud Springs Elementary and West Side Elementary. (Contributed photo)More than 800 of Catoosa County's neediest children will have a little something extra to fill their tummies over winter break.
Community National Bank and North Georgia Healthcare Center teamed up to deliver canvas bags filled with snacks and microwavable meals to students in two of the county's most underserved schools last week.
After being packed with the help of student volunteers from Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe High, the 860 care packages were distributed between Cloud Springs Elementary and West Side Elementary, each chosen because of the large number of students eligible for free and reduced-price meals through the National School Lunch Program.
Each canvas bag distributed contained three boxes of macaroni and cheese, three boxes of ramen noodles, several cups of pudding and Jell-O, full bags of pretzels and chips, and a package of cookies. The goal is to provide enough food to feed not only the child who receives the care package, but also his or her siblings or family members.
"Just from being a mentor and being involved in the school system, [I know] a lot of those kids don't eat over winter break," said Natalie Hunt, senior vice president at Community National Bank in Ringgold. "You hear a lot of stories about kids who need clothes and food and that some of them are homeless and they don't get lot over Christmas, so that's what really prompted us to do this."
Hunt started the service project last year with the delivery of approximately 400 bags to Cloud Springs Elementary, but was able to more than double the number of children helped this year thanks to financial contributions from the bank, as well as through its partnership with North Georgia Healthcare Center.
This year's donation also included stockings filled with candy and toys for pre-K students at West Side Elementary.
"Every year, we hope to increase and get the word out there of what we're trying to do," Hunt said. "We have a lot of employees that have serving hearts and want to help people in our community."
Email Myron Madden at mmadden@timesfreepress.com