Bonney Lake Motorcycle Shop Hosts Food Drive for Local Kids

Tiffany Woodward wanted her 9-year old daughter, Justice, to learn a thing or two about giving back to the community, so the pair started volunteering at the .

Justice, a student at Foothills Elementary in the White River School District, enjoyed working at the food bank and wanted to do more, so the Woodward family decided to start its own local food drive, called . All proceeds will benefit the backpack program, a partnership with the local food banks and the Sumner and White River School Districts that sends a kids in need home for the weekend with a backpack full of food.

“There are people here who are really in need and if we can help one kid get through the weekend I think we’ve made a difference,” said Woodward.

Every Friday, district kids in the free lunch program or identified as in-need receive a backpack of food. Some kids on the free lunch program go home on Friday afternoons and will not eat until they return to school on Monday, so the backpack program provides them with food items they can use to make meals at home on the weekend.

In the Sumner School District, shows the highest need, with 40 to 50 backpacks going home with students every Friday. sends eight to 10 kids home with backpacks, , 15 to 20. and each send about five kids home with food, as does .

The fills and packs the backpacks and drops them off at local schools each week. In Bonney Lake, the food bank supplies the food but the bags are filled by school volunteers on-site. The task has been taken on by the Community-Based Transition Program, about 10 Sumner School District alums who prepare the backpacks every Wednesday and Thursday at Liberty Ridge. The group of 18- to 21-year-olds in the program were determined at-risk during their time in school. The program helps them not only give back to the community but also develop skills to enter the workforce.

Now through September, the Woodwards want to help by offering a place to drop off food items if you can't make it to the food bank. Drop off any food items at , the Woodward's motorcycle body and repair shop in Bonney Lake.

The need for donations is high and you can also drop off any food items at the Bonney Lake or Sumner Food Banks during business hours. Peanut butter is always in high demand for the backpack program, as it is protein-rich, healthy and popular with young students. The food banks also accept toiletry, pet and childcare items. 

"Anything you yourself might want or need, someone else in the area needs it too," said Bonney Lake food bank director Stew Bowen.