St. Michael’s students fill bags for homeless outreach project

By Elizabeth Marie Himchak

The 560 preschool through eighth-grade students at St. Michael’s School went home Tuesday with a mission — to give a red reusable bag filled with snacks to a homeless person they encounter.

They filled the bags in assembly-line fashion before listening to speakers share why helping others could be a life-changing experience. The community service project is part of Catholic Schools Week, which concludes on Friday.

“We’re not just giving food, we’re giving hope and they definitely need it,” said eighth-grader Sophie Parra, a member of St. Michael’s Mercy Corps Leadership Team, which promotes service to others.

James Niessner, a security guard on the Poway campus, said 28 years ago, as a 6-year-old, he was the recipient of such a blessing. Homeless and without parents, one day “a lady with a rosary gave me a box with three-days worth of food,” he recalled. “I shared it with the people I was with. It was quite a turning point because nobody (had done that for me before).

“There was a little card, that said ‘You are loved by Jesus.’ That stuck with me,” Niessner said, adding he still regrets losing the card he always carried while in high school.

But its message remained with him and while serving in the military was inspiration to keep fighting when tempted to give up, he said. “When I would forget what I was fighting for, I remembered God is still here and still loves us. That (box) was a big thing; life changing.”

Students placed in each bag a juice box, trail mix, pretzels, apple sauce pouch, box of raisins, two protein bars, two individual size bags of Cheez-Its, two Slim-Jims, two Rice Krispie Treats and a note or drawing from the student. The food was donated by parents and bags provided by the school’s student council and Mercy Corps plus the Red Bag organization.

The latter was started three years ago by Michael McRoskey, now a senior at St. Augustine High School. McRoskey said he was inspired by a class project that had him handing out sandwiches to the homeless in downtown San Diego and seeing their appreciation.

“I’m a perfect example of no matter how old you are, you can (make a difference),” McRoskey said of his nonprofit organization that promotes handing out bags of food instead of money to the homeless. For details on obtaining filled bags for distribution, go to

www.red-bag.org

.

“For me, this is a great project that has opened my eyes,” said eighth-grader Allison Grygar, student council vice president. “I was told you don’t give money to the homeless because they’ll buy drugs and alcohol. But this cements what I learned in religion class, to give (the homeless) a chance to have equality with us.”

“We’re amazingly privileged,” Parra said. “But we’re helping others in our community at a deeper level. We don’t think now of the homeless ... as different, but equal to us, whom we need to take care of.”

Principal Kathleen Mock said Red Bag is one of several service projects the school worked on this year. Others have included Toys for Tots, Wounded Warriors, Fr. Joe’s Village and fundraising for those in the Philippines, Haiti, Mexico and San Diego’s inner-city Catholic schools.

Mercy Corps Adviser Jennifer Tucker said it is a way “for the whole school to come together and show God’s love by helping others.”

Tucker said, “While we cannot fix homelessness, we can brighten their day and maybe they’ll pass it on.” She added, “I’m proud of the students. It’s more than just putting a bag together, it’s about changing feelings.”

“You never know how far one little act can go,” Niessner added.