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The BackPack Program helps Gorham students who are suffering from the effects of hunger by providing nutritious, easy-to-prepare food to eat during weekends and school vacations when those crucial school meals are unavailable. Please consider helping students experiencing food insecurity.

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Backpack Volunteers Needed! Sign up for a shift (or more).

  • Bag Packers: bags are packed every two weeks on Tuesdays, 9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.

  • Bag Distributors: place bags in lockers (30-45 minutes a week)

  • Bin Deliveries to Schools: Bins will be packed and ready for pickup at GMS. This shift requires a vehicle that can fit 2-4 bins and requires heavy lifting. This service is needed every two weeks, on Tuesdays from 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.

  • Bin pick-up: pick up empty bins from all schools and return to GMS. 45 minutes - 1hr every two weeks.

  • Room organization: organize food on shelves (once a month)

  • On-call food order pick up: be on-call to pick up a food order from BJs & deliver to GMS

  • Promotions: volunteers would be provided with approved ads to promote the Backpack on their social media platform

  • Thank you card writer/sender: write thank you cards and send them to partners & volunteers

  • Summer work volunteer: pack bags

  • Summer work volunteer: deliver bags

Current Needs

We appreciate your donations! 

01

Cinch Backpacks

We use these to discretely distribute food to students.

Purchase on Amazon

02

Visit our Amazon
Wish List 

Thank you.

See our Wish List
Food Donations Needed

Thanks for your interest in donating to the Gorham BackPack Program! This list has been developed to include foods that are easy for a child to prepare on his/her own, and which are not too heavy for a child to carry home. For some items we ask for certain brands, because we're trying to fill particular nutritional or packaging needs. Please reach out to us with any questions! 

If you purchase items on your own at a store of your choice, please deliver to the Gorham Middle School office during school hours.

106 Weeks Rd.
7:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m

  • 16.3 oz. plastic jars of creamy peanut butter
    (Hannaford and Shaw's each have a store brand in this size)

  • Individual apple sauce snack cups, any brand (unsweetened, please)

  • Individual fruit cups-packed in water

  • Carnation instant breakfast packets.
    These come unrefrigerated, and can be bought in a 10 pack at Hannaford, or a 15 pack at Sam's Club.

  • 4 oz. cans of tuna fish, packed in water

  • One pound packages of pasta
    any brand, any pasta shape

  • Instant oatmeal packets, any brand or flavor

  • Granola bars
    any brand or flavor, please avoid those containing nuts

  • Regular size cans of soup
    any brand or variety, pop top if possible

  • Chef Boyardee canned pasta
    (such as ravioli), 15 oz. cans

  • 32 oz. boxes of pancake/waffle mix, any brand

  • Canned Vegetables: 15 oz. cans of corn

  • 15 oz. cans of green beans/etc.

  • Kraft Easy-mac Microwaveable: pouches

  • Ramen (any flavor)

  • Smuckers Jelly - 20oz squeeze container

Please, no glass jars, no "value" or large sizes of items, and pop tops are great whenever possible. Thanks so much for your support!

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