Pack the Bus food drive to kick off Saturday

JACKSON, Tenn. — A local organization is hosting a food drive to feed hungry children in the Jackson community.

The Regional Inter-Faith Association, also known as RIFA, will be hosting its annual Pack the Bus food drive Saturday.

The community is encouraged to shop at local Walmart and Kroger stores to help Jackson-Madison County school buses fill up with non-perishable food items to kick-start the Snack Backpack program.

“The Snack Backpack program can fill that gap of providing weekend food on Saturdays and Sundays, so when the kids come back to school on Monday, they’re able to learn,” said Lindsay Dawkins, Marketing and Events Coordinator at RIFA.

Through Snack Backpack, RIFA is able to serve 14 different schools and provide 1,200 backpacks each week throughout the school year.

“That’s why Pack the Bus is so important because it takes a lot of food to be able to serve 1,200 kids each week,” Dawkins said.

Volunteers will be at five locations Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

“We will be at Walmart North, Walmart South [and] all three Kroger locations: Lynwood, Stonebrook and University Parkway,” Dawkins said.

Volunteers will be on hand at each store with a list of items, such as pop tarts, granola bars and other goodies, for the Snack Backpacks.

“Applesauce, ramen noodles, ravioli with the pop tops, chicken noodle soup with the pop tops, easy macaroni, the bowls or the individual packets that you can microwave,” Dawkins said.

Each snack backpack provides children with six meals and two snacks.

This is the 8th annual Pack the Bus food drive.