Backpacks for Breaks

The Kiwanis Club of Ellicott City is proud to continue its long-standing partnership with the Howard County Public School System (HCPSS) through the creation of the Backpacks for Breaks program. This service initiative aims to eliminate food insecurity in our community by providing children with nutritious meals during school breaks when free and reduced lunch programs are not in operation.

The Kiwanis Club of Ellicott City plans to replicate this project in Spring 2023 when it provides an additional 150 local children with backpacks filled with meals and healthy snacks for Winter Break. 

To make a contribution to Backpacks for Breaks via PayPal, please:

• Use this direct link to make your gift, or
• Scan this QR Code to launch PayPal on your mobile device and make your gift.

If you wish to send a donation via check, please make it payable to: Kiwanis Club of Ellicott City. Please note Backpacks for Breaks on the memo line. Checks may be mailed to our club at this address:

Kiwanis Club of Ellicott City
P.O. Box 788
Ellicott City, MD 21041

In December 2022, the Kiwanis club provided 150 backpacks to children for the 12-day Winter Break. That was a total of 4,950 meals. Students from the Hawks Fight Hunger Club at River Hill High School rallied to donate over 2,000 individual food items for the project. Again, our project was supported by a generous donation of 2,000 pieces of fresh fruit from Coastal Sunbelt Produce, a substantial grant from the Capital District Kiwanis Foundation, and the transformative support of individual donors from throughout our community. 

Thank you to the generous donors who have helped to make our Backpacks for Breaks program a reality. Your financial contributions are making a difference in the lives of children in Howard County as our club aims to eliminate food insecurity locally. Special thanks to the Capital District Kiwanis Foundation for naming our club the recipient of a generous matching grant in 2020-2021, 2021-2022, and 2022-2023, and to Coastal Sunbelt Produce for their donation of over 10,000 pieces of fresh fruit to supplement our backpacks since December 2020. Every donation we receive helps us to feed children in our community.

History of Backpacks for Breaks

The Kiwanis Club of Ellicott City was chartered in 1940 and has served the citizens of Howard County for over 80 years. Backpacks for Breaks was launched in December 2019 when the Kiwanis club provided 48 backpacks for elementary school students in Columbia. Each backpack was filled with 30 meals (10 breakfasts, 10 lunches, 10 dinners, and snacks) for the 10-day Winter Break. That was a total of 1,440 meals.

The club planned to replicate the effort in April 2020, but plans were changed due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. In July and August 2020, club members rallied together to provide 560 total meals each week to 80 children from 20 underserved families in Columbia. In total, 2,800 meals were provided over the course of five weeks. 

In December 2020, the Kiwanis club provided 150 local children with backpacks filled with 33 meals and healthy snacks for the 11-day Winter Break. That was a total of 4,950 meals.  In April 2021, the Kiwanis club provided 150 backpacks to children for the five-day Spring Break for a total of 2,250 meals. In December 2021, the Kiwanis club provided 150 local children with backpacks filled with 33 meals and healthy snacks for the 11-day Winter Break. That was a total of 4,950 meals.  In April 2022, the Kiwanis club provided 150 backpacks to children for the 11-day Spring Break for a total of 4,950 meals.

Since the project’s inception in December 2019, the Kiwanis Club of Ellicott City has provided over 30,000 meals for children in Howard County.