We are happy to share photos received from our partner in Nicaragua, Convoy of Hope. These servants with a heart meals packed by many schools, churches, and other groups in the greater Charlotte area are being used by a variety of people in Convoy of Hope Program Centers in schools and churches in Nicaragua.

We are grateful for their partnership, and for our awesome volunteers who are making such an impact. 💚💙

It’s tough to read all the labels, but we can see quite a few boxes from Lake Forest Church in Huntersville, NC!

Check out the footage below to see video from our recent packing event at St. Matthew Catholic Church! You can also learn more about the efforts of this church and its impact on Haiti.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/98pubnvec4tuly5hsroj1/St-Matthew-2024.mp4?rlkey=knd7tmvg0ppu6nk6iffxzuhba&e=1&st=q739ed2v&bmus=1&dl=0

https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nc/triangle-sandhills/news/2024/08/26/st-matthew-catholic-church--haiti--missionaries-of-the-poor--food-drive

Today’s blog is from Kristin Johnson, Event Coordinator at St. Mary Magdalene Catholic Church in Simpsonville, SC

It would be tough to find an outreach project that has more benefits and fruits than a meal packing event with Servants With a Heart. With sacrificial giving, where can you give a little or a lot and see it manifested in front of you—elements of a meal that you helped pay for and then helped transform into sustenance for an ailing, hungry world? Lives are changed on a meal packing day, and I am not talking about the recipients of the food! Church member after member commented on the impact this event has had on their lives, their priorities, their finances, their prayers, their inclusion in the life of the church, and their willingness to serve in the future.

Last year was our first year hosting this event and we raised over $30,000, engaged 425 volunteers, and packed 150,000 meals. It was such an overwhelmingly positive event that this year, we raised over $55,000, engaged 750 volunteers, and packed over 200,000 meals. Thank you to the Servants With a Heart core members, sponsors, and volunteers who make this event easy to coordinate, meaningful, and inspiring.

Today’s guest blogger is Jennifer Briggs, who recently served at one of our SWH Impact Days

Several members of our church have had the opportunity to serve with Servants With a Heart multiple times. Each time it has been a wonderful experience. All the volunteers who lead Servants With a Heart have consistently been helpful and kind. The two hour volunteer time down in their space at Furniture Factory Outlet World in Waxhaw is just the perfect amount of time and they have the whole setup structured really well. The video they show about halfway through the volunteering time is a small window into how packing this food helps many who do not have regular meals readily available to them and their families. It is a beautiful snippet of how we are to be the hands and feet of Christ.

It has been sweet to have this as an opportunity to serve as a whole family. As the mother of three boys, I actively look to find organizations that serve our community and world that I can serve side-by-side with my boys. We have had families volunteer with us at Servants With a Heart from our church. Each time everyone walks away knowing they have spent this small time well to serve others around the world and truly have enjoyed themselves. It is a fun experience to work alongside others for a common cause. We are thankful to all those who organize this ministry at Servants With a Heart and we are blessed to have been a small part of it.

Today’s guest blogger is Tessa Burleson, a High School Science Teacher at Union Academy in Monroe, NC

Union Academy 4-H/FFA students were given the opportunity to pack meals for Servants With a Heart in May 2024. This opportunity provided our students with valuable lessons about the agriculture industry as well allowing them to help those in need.

The students learned about the process of procuring the supplies needed for the rice packages, where the commodities were grown and the process of shipping the meal boxes worldwide. Students were able to get hands-on experience packaging meals while giving back to the community through their service.

Our students truly enjoyed learning about the "behind the scenes" work of SWH and were very grateful to know that they were helping others in need!

Today’s blog is written by Carol Claypool, from Sugar Creek Elementary in Fort Mill, SC

Servants with a Heart does not disappoint. We have served with this organization for over eight years through collaboration with a church. We were so touched by their organization that we decided to initiate a first-time food packing in Fort Mill Schools, hosted at Sugar Creek Elementary School! The results- spectacular! Our students and staff repeatedly reported that it is one of our school's most meaningful and significant events. From kindergarten through fifth grade, seven hundred forty-eight students rotated into the educational class and then to the packing station. During the educational station, students learned what life was like in Nicaragua and why the children needed their support. Students then moved into the gymnasium and packed 53,136 meals in a single day! Administration, district leaders, staff, community stakeholders, parents, ROTC students, and our students worked side by side to pack the food that would later be delivered to children in the greater Charlotte area and Nicaragua.The Servants With a Heart volunteer staff was very organized and efficient.Our students continued serving throughout the day, selecting from various other local and global needs.  

This event empowered our students to know they can make a difference locally and globally.

Today’s blog is from Paul Thomas, Campus Pastor at Forest Hill Church in Fort Mill, SC

We always love getting to serve with Servants With a Heart. Personally, my son loves it so much that he ends up serving for 7 hours straight, and there just aren’t that many opportunities for a 10 year old to get to serve like that in such a significant and impactful way.

It has always been a great opportunity for our congregation to serve together, make connections and, like I said above, give an opportunity for parents to serve next to their kids. Multi-generational serving at its best.

This has also been a great opportunity for those that are new to our church to take a first step in connecting with others. We had several new guests come out that we were able to connect with and connect with others.

And that’s just the benefits we receive, which is not the point of the event. We get to serve those in real need around the world with both sustenance for their stomachs, and for their souls as these meals are delivered with the hope of the Gospel of Jesus.

If you’d like to host an event at your church, please contact us! info@servantswithaheart.org

Today’s blog is written Cynthia Mitchell from Union Academy, the first and longest operating charter school in Union County, NC

This week our K-12 family of students and staff had the opportunity to participate with Servants With a Heart in packing meals for those in need around the world. Our school has worked with the SWH in the past, and it is always one of our favorite days of the year! One student commented “I wish I could do this every day.” Students learned about the program, experienced hands-on service, and had fun interacting with their school family groups as part of Union Academy’s Annual Community Service Day.

The team at Servants With a Heart is professional, accommodating, and wonderful to work with. The process was seamless, as communication was great between their organization and ours. Their leadership and guidance, along with our helpful volunteers, provided over 1,900 students plus staff the opportunity to serve in such a meaningful way. We look forward to partnering again in the future!

A few weeks ago we had the pleasure of packing meals with Metrolina Regional Scholars Academy, a charter school in Charlotte NC. They shared some thoughts about their experience with us.

Today our scholars, staff, and volunteers joined together to make 50,000 meals for those in need! Students were not only able to be hands-on in the meal preparation process, but they also learned so much about the purpose of Servants With a Heart and about the communities that are served by this incredible nonprofit.

Many thanks to Servants With a Heart for this wonderful opportunity to show our scholars what we can achieve for others when we work together. Their eye-opening educational session on child hunger opened our eyes to the realities faced by many children around the world. We learned how packing meals can make a big difference in these children’s’ lives. Thanks to their guidance, our students and staff worked together and packed an astounding 50,544 meals. It’s amazing how we can help fight child starvation right from our own school. This experience not only united our school community but has also instilled a sense of empathy and responsibility in all of us, while also making us aware of the world around us. Big thanks to Servants With a Heart for showing us how to make a real impact!

Today’s blog is from Michelle Bitter, Assistant Principal at McKee Road Elementary in Charlotte NC

This was an entire school-wide planned event. Everyone in the building pitched in, from setting up the night before, to scheduling the times for classes, meal packing and packing and cleaning up afterwards. Every student in the building participated from 4-year-old Pre-K students to 5th graders! We had every classroom teacher (general education, special area, and support staff), administrators, custodians, students and their families. We even had our spouses come lend a hand!

Students took a lot of pride in helping others in their community and around the world. We were able to pack 51,624 meals and helped Servants With a Heart pack their 27 millionth meal! Some of the students commented:

• "This service made me want to donate because it was useful and so helpful to other people." Lily
  

• " It feels nice to give to people in need! Just imagining the smiles makes me smile!" Reese
  

• "It felt really good to help feed other people. It was interesting and fun to pack meals. Required a lot of great teamwork!" Kritika
  

• "We helped change the world! It was fun. It was very well organized." Amulya

Everyone stepped in and worked together. Everyone was excited about how many boxes they could fill. The energy was high and we were all full of excitement throughout the day. Students were beaming with pride heading back to class!