From The President Files: Purpose with Liliana

[Liliana is the current president of Blessings in A Backpack-Galesburg Chapter. Blessings in a Backpack is a non-profit organization that works with communities to feed children--who qualify for free or reduced lunches--over the weekends during the school year. We will follow her journey throughout the year as a part of the President Files series. You can learn more about Blessings in a Backpack at: http://www.blessingsinabackpack.org/]

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I woke up at 3 am this morning with a smile on my face. I naturally rise when I get excited. This morning, it was because I am looking forward to arriving back on the Knox College campus, to begin taking classes, and to be involved with the activities I am a part of; with one particularly in mind: Blessings in a Backpack. I decided to follow my eager feelings by brainstorming and daydreaming (night dreaming…?) about the year to come. I pulled out my Blessings in a Backpack folder and notebook and began reminiscing on the past year and looking forward to the group starting back up again this Fall. Just before I began to feel slightly uneasy between the past and the future of the group, I found the brightly colored notecards from an activity done with the group last year that re-grounded me.  

After a packing session, we had everyone answer the question, “Why do you do Blessings in a Backpack?” The notecards range in answers; however each card defined the purpose for the student to be in attendance of packing session that evening. The purpose: a word that comes to mind when I feel like small-scale community service cannot make big change.

Disregard the fact that poverty is a difficult and complicated situation to understand. That the food we’re providing is not the highest of quality. That we cannot feed every hungry child or adult in this county, state, country or world. What I choose to focus on is that there are 352 Galesburg Elementary School students receiving a bit of food for their weekend. There is much to be said about making a difference to one child. That is big.

I began reading the cards again, with an even deeper appreciation for the peers that surround me. There was some sort of push within each individual to pack bags of food for children. It doesn’t matter specifically why we were all gathered that day. But if our work can make one child smile, then we have accomplished the purpose of the group collectively. There are several reasons why I do Blessings in a Backpack. Being a part of a group with purpose is one of them.

-Liliana