When children from food insecure families are not in school on the weekends or during holidays, they have limited access to food. Blessings in a Backpack, an organization within Heller Service Corps, addresses this issue in the Greenville County school districts. This past academic year, the group delivered 2,825 bags of food.
Neha Bhatnagar ‘26 and Charlie Swiersz ‘25 co-lead the program.
“I found Blessings in a Backpack through Heller Service Corps,” Swiersz said. “Taylor (Danser), the previous president, has been a really strong mentor, and watching him start this organization is inspiring. His leadership style and passion for service keeps me motivated to continue what he started.”
Similarly, Bhatnagar found Blessings through Heller. “Seeing our peers and how committed they have been through trying to transform the lives of these students as they try to deliver weekly has inspired me to continue to work alongside them as I transition into co-directing it next year with Charlie,” Bhatnagar said.
The Harvest Hope food bank and Methodist United church get food donations from Furman volunteers, who then help distribute it to middle and elementary schools across the county.
“Then, on Friday the social workers deliver the bags to the students, and their families then have food security for the weekends,” Bhatnagar said.
The group holds packing events on campus, and is planning on starting food drives soon.
“It won’t be a long-term solution to alleviate all of the food inequity, but we hope to relieve the anxiety and help support people while we attempt to achieve long-term resolution of food equity for families,” Bhatnagar said.
Although these events have been impactful, the Blessings in a Backpack team is in need of more consistent volunteers to support them.
“We would love to have people commit for the entire academic year,” Swiersz said. “We have monthly meetings where we share upcoming packing events, the differences we have been making so far like how many bags we have for deliveries, and discussing feedback from people who have made deliveries so we can make a more efficient process.”
For students interested in getting involved, Blessings in a Backpack needs volunteers that are available on Monday or Tuesday before 1:30 PM to make deliveries.
“In this role for the Greenville community, they are relying on us, so we get about not following through for these kids,” Bhatnagar said. “We need people who are committed and passionate about service who are able to take on this role to impact the future of these kids.”
