Power Packs Project seeks volunteers

"There are similar programs, but to the best of our knowledge there is no one that does exactly what we do," stated Brad Peterson, executive director with Power Packs Project, which delivers ingredients to make a nutritious meal to families in Lancaster, York, and Lebanon counties. Peterson noted that last year, the organization provided nearly half a million meals made up of more than 500,000 pounds of food.

Power Packs was founded in 2009 by Joan Espenshade, who was volunteering at a Lancaster city school when she saw some students lined up to get breakfast and others visiting the nurse's office complaining of stomach aches because they had not had enough to eat over the weekend. "We give a recipe and all the ingredients for that recipe," said Peterson, adding that the costs of the ingredients are included and that a recent meal cost $7.91 to make. "It's part of our mission to empower families to show them they can create a healthy meal on a budget," he said. The pack, which usually weighs 9 pounds or less, also includes staples such as cereal, canned goods, and fresh milk.

Originally, the program distributed food to schools in bulk, and volunteers assembled the packs in grocery bags for students. However, with the advent of COVID-19 restrictions, schools were closed, and when they reopened, volunteers were not allowed inside. "We started packing boxes in our warehouse," said Peterson, who noted that school and church parking lots became pickup sites for parents. The situation changed the Power Packs distribution system permanently. Now, boxes are packed at the Power Packs Project location at 1915 Olde Homestead Lane, Lancaster, for distribution to schools and students each Wednesday and Thursday. The program runs 35 weeks during the school year, and an eight-week summer distribution will begin Wednesday, June 21, and end Wednesday, Aug. 9.

Power Packs runs on volunteer power, clocking more than 700 volunteer hours provided by 475 individuals in the month of April. "We can always use more volunteers," said Peterson, who noted some volunteers put in as many as 20 hours a week. The organization has a special need for volunteer drivers to deliver packs to schools and volunteers to distribute at schools. Peterson noted that for those tasks, it makes sense if the volunteers live in or near the districts receiving the delivery and doing the distribution. Current Lancaster County Power Packs distribution areas include a total of 66 schools located in the School District of Lancaster, Warwick, Manheim Township, Penn Manor, Hempfield, Donegal, Cocalico, Columbia, and Lampeter-Strasburg. Most volunteer tasks require about a two-hour time commitment. Distribution and delivery volunteers are needed on Wednesdays and Thursdays. "Packers at the warehouse typically do two-hour shifts but if someone only has an hour, that's fine," said Peterson, who added that groups of volunteers have come in during evenings and on weekends.

Readers who are interested in volunteering for the organization may visit http://www.powerpacksproject.org/volunteer or call 717-517-9220.