POWERGRAMS

32 PROVIDING FOOD TO HUNGRY KIDS IN JASPER, SUMITON AND BEYOND Backyard Blessings was born in 2010 when Jones, the wife of a retired Church of God minister, learned that children at Sumiton Elementary School didn't have enough food at home on weekends. "A teacher I know said that she'd feed some kids a peanut butter sandwich before they left on the bus Friday afternoons," said Jones, a Jasper resident. "She knew they wouldn't be eating on the weekend." Jones was dismayed. She couldn't sit back knowing children were suffering. Jones and her husband had served at an inner-city church, and work in different states led them to operate a food bank, a Christian drug-rehabilitation center, a church-based daycare and a summer camp for 150 children. With Jones' administrative skills, organizing a nonprofit to help hungry children didn't seem a far stretch. "I knew others would feel the same way I did," she said. "I got in touch with a childhood friend, and we kinda put our heads together. I told her, 'These children are in our backyards. We need to do something.'" Jones talked with representatives of a nonprofit that combats childhood hunger in Carson City, Nev. She pulled together a group of friends and, with a $1,000 donation, started Backyard Blessings. Six years later, Backyard Blessings' scope includes buying and bagging food for delivery to 700 children at seven Walker County schools. There are many drivers behind childhood hunger: Households with minimum-wage earners often cannot afford groceries; some families misuse food stamp money; and problems are fueled by substance or alcohol abuse. "No matter what, it's never, ever the child's fault," Jones said. "There's such a huge need. You can't provide a life on minimum wage. Teachers say that in the lunchroom, kids will take food that other kids leave behind. On Mondays, some kids don't have the energy to sit up because they haven't eaten all weekend. We have kids who live in homes with no electricity and no running water. It's hard to believe that exists today, but it does." Backyard Blessings operates on donations and grants, as Jones buys food at volume-discount stores and the Community Food Bank of Birmingham. At the Dora Piggly Wiggly in space lent by Backyard Blessings board member Phillip Bozeman, about 25 volunteers join every Thursday to bag food. School administrators, guidance counselors and teachers discreetly place small bags in children's backpacks before school ends each Friday. "We feel that, if we can put this little bag of food in their hands, they at least have that for the weekend," Jones said. Webb said the Jasper Energizers were moved to help with Jones' mission. "We all know that this is a big problem, and that's why we want to do something," she said. Webb and other Jasper Energizers – Doug Booth, Charles Gilliland, Shirley Mitchell, Jackie Simmons, Michelle Smith and Sherer – help Backyard Blessings prepare meals for students. Sherer said the volunteers always begin packing with prayer: "We prayed for the people and their families, and we prayed for the work." Energizers filled bags with nine food items – something a child can eat cold or warmed-up on the weekend. A typical bag includes cereal, oatmeal, fruit and a milk or juice; "entrees" such as canned macaroni and beef, ravioli and tuna salad; and animal crackers or fruit snacks. In a couple of hours, volunteers packed and stored bags in large plastic totes for easy delivery to schools on Thursday afternoons. "I've been contacting everyone I know to give money to Backyard Blessings," said Sherer. "My heart goes out to children and senior adults, because they get overlooked. They don't have a voice for themselves." Jones was thrilled that Backyard Blessings was among 10 nonprofit groups receiving grants from the Jasper Energizers. "We're in a rural area, and it's a long way around this county," said Jones, who wants to devise a way to get food to children at their homes but finds many obstacles. "Backyard Blessings is my calling, my thing, my vision," said Jones, 60. "After I retired, I thought I wasn't going to do anything, but God had different plans. I really didn't have an idea it would turn out to be this big." Jasper Energizers gave to the following: • ARC of Walker County • Bevill State Community College nursing scholarship • Concerned Citizens for Our Youth Inc. • Daybreak • Girl Scouts • Hope Clinic • Hope for Women • Main Street Ministries Inc. • Project Lifesaver International • Walker County Children's Advocacy Center • Walker County Humane Society.

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