Luther's Lunch Bags
Luther’s Lunch Bags is a community ministry of our congregation. It provides weekly, nutritious, easy to prepare meals for participating day-time students attending The Minnick School in Wytheville.
The Minnick School is one of five schools in Virginia operated by Lutheran Family Services of Virginia. Our local school serves about 50 students annually from Wythe, Bland, Smyth, Grayson, Pulaski, Carroll and other southwest VA counties. As an accredited school, children ages 5-22 with physical, behavioral and emotional challenges participate in a daytime educational setting in a safe and caring learning environment. Minnick Schools partner closely with local school divisions to provide opportunities to children who are not succeeding in a traditional public school setting, including counseling and specially designed programs to assist in students’ transition back to public school when ready.
The Minnick School is one of five schools in Virginia operated by Lutheran Family Services of Virginia. Our local school serves about 50 students annually from Wythe, Bland, Smyth, Grayson, Pulaski, Carroll and other southwest VA counties. As an accredited school, children ages 5-22 with physical, behavioral and emotional challenges participate in a daytime educational setting in a safe and caring learning environment. Minnick Schools partner closely with local school divisions to provide opportunities to children who are not succeeding in a traditional public school setting, including counseling and specially designed programs to assist in students’ transition back to public school when ready.
Since September 2015, the Luther’s Lunch Bags has given more than 13,000 food items to children at The Minnick School during the academic year. We also provided weekend foods for those who participated in the 2016 summer school program. Luther’s Lunch Bags also provided recognition throughout the academic year to the teachers and staff of The Minnick School to thank them for their work and dedication. We are excited to continue to help provide for these students and support the important work of their school.
The program is open to any student who registers; relieving some of the financial and emotional burden for these families. Using a local example, approximately 15.6% of residents fall below the poverty level just in Wytheville alone. According to Feeding America, 1 in 8 people in Virginia struggle with hunger. Feeding America also shares that in 2015, 14.5 million or approximately 20 percent of children in the U.S. lived in poverty and based on their 2014 "Map the Meal Gap" study -- the child food insecurity rate for counties in southwest VA range from 9.8% to 14.2%.
The program is open to any student who registers; relieving some of the financial and emotional burden for these families. Using a local example, approximately 15.6% of residents fall below the poverty level just in Wytheville alone. According to Feeding America, 1 in 8 people in Virginia struggle with hunger. Feeding America also shares that in 2015, 14.5 million or approximately 20 percent of children in the U.S. lived in poverty and based on their 2014 "Map the Meal Gap" study -- the child food insecurity rate for counties in southwest VA range from 9.8% to 14.2%.