'Super Bold Sunday' packs meals for needy

Volunteers assemble meals during a Feed the Funnel party with The Pack Shack, a Rogers-based nonprofit organization dedicated to fighting hunger.
Volunteers assemble meals during a Feed the Funnel party with The Pack Shack, a Rogers-based nonprofit organization dedicated to fighting hunger.

Last year on Super Bowl Sunday, the Rev. Luke Conway surprised his congregation at Lakewood United Methodist Church in North Little Rock with a meal-packing party in place of regular morning worship services. Conway had partnered with The Pack Shack, a Rogers-based nonprofit organization, to challenge members to put their faith into action by packing meals for those in need.

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Special to the Democrat-Gazette

Members of Lakewood United Methodist Church in North Little Rock packed almost 17,000 meals during Super Bold Sunday last year. This year they hope to assemble 40,000 meals for the hungry.

The church's mission is "to expand the light," and Conway said he wanted to challenge the congregation to do something bold, something great for God. But missions work doesn't often happen on Sunday mornings. The Pack Shack event was an opportunity to change that.

"I wanted to challenge them to do something right then," Conway said.

He wasn't sure how they would react. "I really thought folks would skip out and cruise on out to the car and leave, but the opposite happened."

The congregation took up the challenge, and young and old -- about 350 or so -- worked side by side to pack almost 17,000 meals.

"We liked it so much, it was such a great event we wanted to do it again," Conway said.

The party won't be a surprise for this year's "Super Bold Sunday" at the church, but the goal has been raised substantially. The congregation plans to pack 40,000 meals for food pantries in central Arkansas, including the one at Gardner Memorial United Methodist Church in North Little Rock. Worshippers will attend shortened worship services at 9 or 11 a.m. and then head to the fellowship hall, where tables and equipment from The Pack Shack will be set up for assembly-line meal packing.

The Pack Shack organizes these "Feed the Funnel" parties for churches, businesses, civic groups and other organizations. Bret Raymond, chief executive officer, had been working in Rwanda for an organization fighting malnutrition. When he returned to Northwest Arkansas he began asking questions about local hunger and nutrition and what he and his team could do to help.

"We spent several months talking to nonprofits, foundations and churches to find out how we could help," he said.

That led to The Pack Shack, which Raymond founded in 2013 with Jarod Ring.

Here's how it works: Groups sign up for a packing party, either at the Rogers warehouse or at their own location, and set a goal of how many meals they want to assemble and where they want the meals to go. The cost is 25 cents per meal, so a church or group wanting to pack 40,000 meals like Lakewood UMC would need to raise $10,000 to cover the cost of the food. Conway said the congregation began raising money during Advent and continued to collect quarters into the new year.

The meals -- Cheesy Rice and Vegetables, and Rice and Veggies Casserole -- include at least 10 grams of protein per serving, as well as 19 vitamins and minerals. The meals are packed at the "Feed the Funnel" parties with volunteers grouped in an assembly line setup, hair nets and all. They funnel the food mixture into labeled bags, seal them and pack them for delivery. When the meals reach the hands of those in need, all that's needed to prepare them is boiling water and a little time for simmering.

Raymond said the packing events have a party atmosphere, complete with a gong that's sounded each time 100 meals are packed.

"We call it a dance party with a cause," Raymond said.

It doesn't take long for any size group to pack a lot of meals.

"When you get 200 people together and everyone is focused on something, it's amazing what people can accomplish," he said.

As for Conway, he has high hopes for Sunday's event and plans to make "Super Bold Sunday" an annual event. The public is welcome to participate.

Lakewood United Methodist Church is at 1922 Topf Road, North Little Rock. Information is available online at expandingthelight.org. Information on The Pack Shack is available at thepackshack.org.

Religion on 02/06/2016

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