Special to the LPJ
RUSTON, La. — Boys & Girls Clubs of North Louisiana hosted hundreds of volunteers for a community meal packing event on Wednesday, September 16. Supported by a grant from the 9/11 Day Foundation in partnership with AmeriCorps, local organizations, community members, Club kids and their families packed hundreds of boxes full of apple cinnamon oatmeal packs in just a few hours. More than 24,000 meals will be donated to community organizations to help support families facing hunger.
“We are so amazed by the incredible effort and energy our volunteers brought to our event,” said Lexi Wooten, Volunteer Coordinator for Boys & Girls Clubs of North Louisiana. “The turnout proves how deeply our community cares about showing up for our neighbors.”
This local event was part of 9/11 Day’s nationwide “UNITE For Good” campaign, an unprecedented effort to transform the anniversary of 9/11 into America’s largest day of service. Through its $3 million grant program, 9/11 Day empowers local organizations to address critical community needs, with a primary focus on combating hunger.
“We’re so thankful to 9/11 Day and AmeriCorps for making this possible, but the real magic was watching our local volunteers work together to make this happen,” said Eldontá Osborne, CEO of Boys & Girls Clubs of North Louisiana. “It’s one thing to tell the Club kids about the importance of giving back, but showing them firsthand what it looks like when a community steps up to help their neighbors, that’s a lesson that sticks with them.”
