Dear Pastor,
Thank you for seeing the vision of sharing the love of Christ through the practical acts of the Backpack & School Supplies Giveaway Community event. We are really excited to celebrate together the 10th year of providing backpacks packed with school supplies to our community’s children. Without your support, this long-running event would cease to exist.
As of last year, 2024, WCC planned for 383 students. We served a total of 366 students, our best year yet, with an official sponsor, Femme Fatale ATV Ride-Moxie, Inc, donated all the backpacks (not including supplies). This helped to cut our costs by half, with previous years’ backpack and supplies costing approximately $20 per backpack.
Historically, we have approximately 25 volunteers helping with the event, an effort previously made by Warroad Community Church alone. This year, with the help of All Nations New Life Center, Family Fundamental Church, Lakeshore Bible Church, New Life Assembly of God, Woodland Bible Church, and Zion Lutheran Church, and others, we hope to increase the Christian outreach impact within our community.
As according to Ephesians 4:4, our desire is to be an ambassador, representing all the participating churches in this event, being united in Spirit, operating with all humility, gentleness, patience, and love. Though we be many, we are of one body through our Lord Jesus Christ, seeking to save the lost together!
We have captured data about those receiving backpacks and identified that approximately 50% of the families utilizing this ministry are unchurched. With your help, we hope to include in these backpacks an informational flyer from each church, welcoming the recipients to visit one of our churches.
With our combined efforts, our vision for 2025 is:
- Planning for a 30% increase – 500 students
- Keeping costs at approximately $20 per backpack, including supplies
- This is significantly cheaper than what ISD690 school supply kits cost!
- Raising a total of $10,000 for the project
- Seeing the unreached (~50% of backpack recipients) be invited to all churches in Warroad with an opportunity to disciple them.
- Praying 100% of the unchurched will respond to at least ONE of the invitations!
What’s needed for a successful event on August 20th:
- Prayer – we ask that you pray for this event, that the funds and volunteers will come forward, and that the families blessed with backpacks that don’t know the Lord will come to church and come to know Jesus as their Lord and savior.
- Volunteers needed, 35 people from all churches involved (this isn’t just ONE CHURCH, but the whole body of Churches!):
- Monday, Aug 18th, anytime between noon – 6:00pm, unbox and stage supplies for packing – 10 volunteers
- Tuesday Aug 19th, anytime between 3:30 – 6:30pm, pack backpacks. 10 volunteers
- Wednesday Aug 20th, 5:30pm, direct traffic, take orders, run backpacks out to vehicles. 15 volunteers
- Churches to advertise and support the effort
WCC will manage the pre-registration for backpacks, ordering supplies, communicating with the attendees by email, record keeping (provided to you if requested), and coordinating volunteers. The distribution will take place at Warroad Community Church. If there is any help you feel you can offer in these areas, please let me know!
We will provide a list of registrations -including the names, phone number, email addresses as provided by registrants- to each church. Let’s seek the Lord together on how to pray for them and share the love of God with them. All information that can be shared to everyone is found at www.warroadcommunitychurch.org/backpack which includes registration for getting a backpack, for volunteering, and for donating to the effort. Additionally, I would like to include a message from each church on this page! Send me your message and I’ll post it.
Have you ever heard of National Back to Church Sunday? It’s a national movement that started 16 years ago, September 2009. You can read more about it here: https://backtochurch.com/. This site has all the graphics and materials already made. All you need to do is add your church name! 😊
WCC joined this movement last year. By doing so, we can testify that the Lord brought people back to church who have not attended a church in a very long time. Playing off the “back to school” synergy, we have decided to include information about our Back to Church event being held on September 21st, 2025. As a suggestion, if you are planning to do a Back to Church event, consider including your event information on your informational flyer to be inserted into the backpacks.
Thank you for your support! To God be the Glory! May people be reached and invited to our churches!
Pastor Daren Mehl
Warroad Community Church
