Summer 2023
June 8th - August 31st
Each week of the summer that you would like lunch supplies, simply sign up before Tuesday at 10 AM to let us know how many people are in your household and which location you would like to pick up at. You are welcome to pick up your lunch kit at whichever site is the most convenient for you, regardless of where you live or your child attends school! This process is completely anonymous, but if you need help feel free to call Bridges of Hope at 218-825-7682. On Thursday, go to the pickup site at the time listed, and give them the last 4 digits of your phone number in order to get your lunch kit.
Sign ups are open weekly
Friday @ 10 AM - Tuesday @ 10 AM
Summer Programming
Did you know that more than 4,200 kids in the Brainerd Lakes Area school districts rely on their school’s free and reduced-price meal programs for lunch? For these kids, when the school year ends, so does the school lunch program— challenging families financially during the summer months.
Bridges of Hope, through Operation Sandwich, provides much needed meals weekly to students facing summer hunger. Grocery bags including 5 days’ worth of bread, peanut butter, jelly, granola bars, fruit snacks, an additional snack, and fresh fruit and/or vegetables are available for pick-up once per week.
School Year Programming
While the summer break is what Operation Sandwich is best known for, we don't take the school year off! We know that school breaks can throw a wrench in your budgets, especially when holidays roll around. Thanks to our generous donors, Operation Sandwich has committed to offering a break snack pack any long weekend that is 4 days or more (EM break, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Spring breaks typically). We reach out to the schools in Crow Wing County and ask them to give us a number of bags that they know would be needed in their building, and let them pick up from us directly to get the bags out. A day or two before break we will hold a community distribution for those that are not connected to a bag through the schools but could still use the help. Follow us on Facebook for upcoming distributions!
Interested in Volunteering?
We use volunteers every week in the summer! You could find yourself unloading a delivery of food from Second Harvest, packing lunches for the week, or distributing lunch packs. Come by yourself, with your family, or a group from work! To get on our list of volunteers, register below by selecting which packing site would work best for you! Questions? Email jessica@bridgesofhopemn.org
Did you know that more than 4,200 kids in the Brainerd Lakes Area school districts rely on their school’s free and reduced-price meal programs for lunch? This means that when summer begins, daily meals go away. Throughout 2022, Bridges of Hope served over 45,000 lunches and snack packs for kids experiencing hunger, an increase of 50% from the previous year. We anticipate serving even more kids facing hunger in 2023, with the majority being served over the summer months.
Bridges of Hope, through Operation Sandwich, provides much needed meals weekly to students facing hunger over the summer and school holidays. Grocery bags including 5 days’ worth of bread, peanut butter, jelly, granola bars, fruit snacks, an additional snack, and fresh fruit and/or vegetables are available for pick-up weekly. According to HungerSolutions.org, 2022 saw record high food shelf visits across Minnesota, increasing by almost 2 million visits as compared to 2021. Because of rising food prices, Operation Sandwich is counting on your support to raise “$40k To Keep Hunger Away” to meet the growing needs of kids and their families in 2023.
Donate to feed kids and families this summer
Make a donation to ensure all kids have the nourishment they need to get them through the summer.
With Operation Sandwich, your gift goes further:
$60 – Sponsor one child’s lunches for a month
$120 – Purchase peanut butter for 4,200 kids’ sandwiches for a week
$250 – Feeds one child for an entire month
$400 – Purchase bread for 4,200 kids’ sandwiches for a week
$600 – Provides healthy snacks for a week
$1,000 – Provides fresh produce needed for all families for an entire month