By Troy Kirby
Gateway Rotary doesn’t just have a few members show up to perform a service project, it packs a room and sets records at the same time.
Essentially, Gateway puts the onus on the 501c3 non-profit Homeless Backpacks to not run out of bags, in the quickest time stuffing imaginable, when its members start stuffing cans of tuna, spaghetti along with boxes of organic milk, mac & cheese, as well as bars of granola and rice crispy treats that have specialty messages written on them specifically for the young children that it feeds.
Gateway set a new personal record of having over 37 people packed in a room on April 20, stuffing 545 bags in less than 30 minutes....
Gateway Rotary doesn’t just have a few members show up to perform a service project, it packs a room and sets records at the same time.
Essentially, Gateway puts the onus on the 501c3 non-profit Homeless Backpacks to not run out of bags, in the quickest time stuffing imaginable, when its members start stuffing cans of tuna, spaghetti along with boxes of organic milk, mac & cheese, as well as bars of granola and rice crispy treats that have specialty messages written on them specifically for the young children that it feeds.
Gateway set a new personal record of having over 37 people packed in a room on April 20, stuffing 545 bags in less than 30 minutes. The volunteer volume supplanted the record set Oct. 6, 2018, when 35 members stuffed 500 bags in 25 minutes, 58 seconds.
With over 632 homeless students in Thurston County, these endeavors help feed them for a week. While setting personal bests for volunteers contributing, it is important to recognize that several rotaries within Thurston County also contribute volunteer efforts toward bag stuffing and seek to eliminate food insecurity for local youths in the area.
Doug Mah, former Olympia Mayor and current Gateway Service Committee Chair believes performing Homeless Backpacks stuffing as a service project brings the membership together. “Bagging parties continue to be a fun and rewarding experience for Gateway Rotary members, friends, and family,” Mah said. “We enjoy the opportunity to work together and serve our community while also having a lot of fun in the process.”
Gateway Rotary also donated $4,000 to Homeless Backpacks for 2019 from its Brats, Brews & Bands service project fundraiser held at the end of each summer.
Homeless Backpacks Board Member, North Thurston Education Foundation Executive Director and Gateway Rotarian Michael Jones lauds the rotary’s continued involvement in the organization.
“Gateway continues to be a great partnership with Homeless Backpack supporting local homeless students. As a former middle school teacher, I saw the impact this type of community giving does for a child that has nothing, preventing them from going hungry through no fault of their own.”
Gateway starts the morning with a fellowship breakfast at O’Blarney’s Irish Pub at 8:30 a.m. on a Saturday, then culminates with the stuffing party at Homeless Backpacks, which is a small former storefront location in a retail outlet mall. Gateway Vice President Amanda Vey says both the fellowship breakfast and bag stuffing get her excited to be a part of the service project.
“When I hear Gateway Rotary has been invited to pack bag for Homeless Backpacks, I clear my schedule so I can be sure to be there. My husband does the same and he’s not even part of Gateway Nation...yet,” Vey said. “It’s such a great feeling to be able to make a kid’s life a little easier by helping them to not worry if they are going to have anything to eat over the weekend when they can’t rely on school meal programs—that’s a great feeling. By doing something so easy as spending 30-45 minutes of my time with my Gateway friends packing 500+ weekend bags of food, we really make a difference for kids trying to stay in school despite their homelessness.”
The pre-breakfast is always fun! Since we have more time and no one is heading to their job just after we finish, it tends to be livelier. I’ve really got to know some of my fellow Gateway tribal members much better - and they are some fun and funny people.” Amanda Vey, Vice President.