By Tiffany Williams –
For some students, the final school bell on Friday can mean something more than the beginning of the weekend. It can also mean leaving behind the meals and food available during the school week.
Weymouth, Massachusetts Public Schools is continuing its partnership with the Weymouth Food Pantry to provide the Backpack Program to students across the district. The program sends participating students home each week with a free bag of kid-friendly food designed to help meet their nutritional needs over the weekend.
The bags may include juice boxes, granola bars, macaroni and cheese cups, Goldfish crackers and milk. The contents will change from week to week, giving participating students additional food to take home before leaving school on Friday.
The program is free and available to all Weymouth Public Schools students. School staff and volunteers will prepare the bags and discreetly distribute them to participating students by Friday afternoon.
That discreet distribution is an important part of how the program operates. Students can receive the additional food without the process becoming a public event during their school day.
Families who have participated previously will need to sign up again. Weymouth Public Schools requires all families to re-enroll each school year so the district can confirm current contact information along with any food allergies or dietary needs.
Families wishing to enroll after October 16 can contact their child’s school for assistance. Additional food resources and information about distribution dates are also available through the Weymouth Food Pantry.
The partnership puts school employees, volunteers and the local food pantry behind a straightforward goal: making sure participating students have additional food available when they leave school for the weekend.
For Weymouth families who need that support, the Backpack Program will once again be there throughout the school year, sending students home on Fridays with something simple but important — food for the weekend.