FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Parker White
Founder/Executive Director
(336) 709-9649
parker@backpackbeginnings.org
May 23, 2017
Zoës Kitchen Volunteers Pitch in to Pack Bags of Food
GREENSBORO, NC—Thousands of children in Guilford County who depend on free or reduced lunch often have little to eat on the weekends. Last Friday, 40 volunteers from Zoës Kitchen helped to fight childhood hunger by joining forces with BackPack Beginnings, a non-profit that provides food, clothing, and comfort to local children in need. Zoës Kitchen is a fast casual restaurant with Mediterranean inspired dishes with 214 locations in 20 states, including locations in Greensboro and Winston-Salem, NC.
“We packed 1,886 bags of food,” said Erin Williams, Area Catering Sales Manager with Zoës Kitchen. “Our employees enjoyed coming together to help feed local children in need.”
“For some children lunch at school on Friday may be the last meal that they receive until Monday morning when breakfast is served at school,” says BackPack Beginnings Founder, Parker White. “That’s why sending food home with children to eat over the weekend is so important.”
Each Friday, bags filled with ready to eat, kid‐friendly food are placed discreetly in children’s backpacks to take home on the weekend. Volunteers are a critical part of the process of packing bags of food and delivering them to schools every week during the school year. “We’re always looking for volunteers to help out at our facility,” says Parker White. “We were thrilled that Zoës contacted us to see how they could help. We are looking forward to working with them again.”
In Guilford County, over 67% of students are enrolled in free or reduced lunches. During the 2016-2017 school year, BackPack Beginnings has sent nutritious, kid-friendly food home on the weekends to over 1,400 children through their Food BackPack Program in 32 Guilford County Title 1 schools and Head Start programs.
About BackPack Beginnings
BackPack Beginnings, founded in 2010 by Parker White, a native of Greensboro and mother of two children, is a 100 percent volunteer-run and donor-driven organization. What started out as a feeding program in one school feeding 50 children has grown to a multi-program organization serving approximately 6,000 children a year. To find out more or support BackPack Beginnings through in-kind donations, funding or volunteering, please contact Parker White at parker@backpackbeginnings.org or visit the organization online at www.backpackbeginnings.org.
About Zoës Kitchen
Founded in 1995, Zoës Kitchen is a fast-casual restaurant group serving a distinct menu of made-from-scratch, Mediterranean-inspired dishes delivered with Southern hospitality. With more than 214 locations in 20 states across the United States, Zoës Kitchen delivers goodness to its guests by sharing simple, tasty and fresh Mediterranean meals that inspire guests to lead a balanced lifestyle and feel their best from the inside out. For more information, please visit www.zoeskitchen.com, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or follow #livemediterranean.
