Volunteers and staff help load boxes of shelf stable food products into the cars of community members at Good Shepherd Baptist Church in Richmond County.

During the months of June and July, Golden Harvest Food Bank will provide summer food assistance to families with children under the age of 18. The Summer Harvest Family Food Box program will help feed families across five rural Georgia counties: Jenkins, Hancock, Screven, Wilkes, and Washington.

Through collaboration with the local school systems, boxes of food including meat and produce products, provided by the Georgia Nutrition Assistance Program (GNAP), will be available to help our neighbors in need in these select counties.

“Kids and families often rely on free or reduced-price school meals as a main source of nutrition,” stated Community Impact Programs Manager Kim Jackson.

“However, when the school year ends, those meals will end as well and now families are left to pick up the cost. The Summer Harvest Family Food Box program will allow families to continue to have nutritious meals throughout the summer.”

During the academic year, Golden Harvest Food Bank also supports elementary, middle, and high school students in need of food assistance through its BackPack and BackPack XL programs.

Last year, the BackPack Programs provided over 3,700 bags of food items to students each week across almost 100 schools throughout the Food Bank’s service area.

Additionally, select schools in Richmond County participate in the School Market program, which provides access to on-site food pantries for K-12 students and their families who are in need.

If you are interested in enrolling your school to help feed children throughout the school year, or for more information on how to get involved with our child and student feeding programs, email: programs@goldenharvest.org.