My church has been working with the Light and Peace Mission in Trois Mares since 2008. When hurricanes destroyed their church, we helped them rebuild. On weekdays, they used that building to offer the only school in town. They started with 30 students and, since many of our people started supporting teacher salaries, now are up to 300.

Then we discovered many Haitian families cannot count on eating even one meal a day, so we started Teaneck Packathon for Haiti, where we invite everyone in Bergen County in on November 9 to pack enough school lunches (123,000!) to feed all the school children in Trois Mares and a neighboring village all year long!

   My Strong People of Grace Lutheran host the Packathon. We set up and decorate the meeting and work rooms. We provide for all 700 volunteers who come from Bergen County and the 30 or so all-day volunteers who work so hard. We cook. We clean. We staff info tables. We vacuum up afterwards. It's an enormous project for us, but we love the packathons.

   In fact, this year, we formed a team to help raise money needed for all the food volunteers will pack. 

This event is essential for:

• about 500 Haitian kids who will get hot lunches every day helping them get healthy and better focus on their school lessons; and
• Bergen County, because it brings together diverse people and demonstrates how we share a commitment to helping others.

Would you help us? The Strong People of Grace Lutheran want to raise $3000 among us, and my personal goal is $500. None of the money will go to the church, but all will go to help school children in Haiti. Please Donate Now. Together, we really can change the world for lots of Haitian children.