Jonesboro, May 18, 2021: The Food Bank of Northeast Arkansas received a grant from the BNSF Railway Foundation, totaling $5,000, which will be used to benefit the organization’s Backpack Program.
The mission of the Backpack Program is to meet the needs of hungry children by providing them with nutritious and easy-to-prepare food to take home on weekends and school holidays. The grant funds will be used to acquire nutritious foods to distribute to children in the Backpack Program each weekend throughout the school year.
According to Christie Jordan, CEO of the Food Bank of Northeast Arkansas, the organization currently serves 1,218 students in 37 schools in Northeast Arkansas.
“The Food Bank is only able to carry out our mission through the generosity of others. We are grateful to the BNSF Railway Foundation for their continued support of this important program,” Jordan said. “The Backpack Program allows us to get food to children who wouldn’t have enough to eat when they are home on the weekend without access to the free breakfast and lunch program at school."
The Food Bank of Northeast Arkansas provides hunger relief to people in need by raising awareness, securing resources, and distributing food through a network of non-profit agencies and programs. The Food Bank of Northeast Arkansas provides the equivalent of 165,000 meals each week to people facing hunger. The Food Bank works in partnership with 140 non-profit partner agencies and programs in 12 counties in Northeast Arkansas. These counties include: Clay, Craighead, Crittenden, Cross, Greene, Jackson, Lawrence, Mississippi, Poinsett, Randolph, St. Francis, and Woodruff. Additionally, the Food Bank of Northeast Arkansas is a member of Feeding America, a national network of food banks. Through our many partnerships, every $1 donated can help provide 4 meals. For additional information, please visit our website www.foodbankofnea.org. You can also find the Food Bank of Northeast Arkansas on Facebook @FoodBankofNEA, Twitter @foodbankofnea, and Instagram @foodbankofnea.
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