TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) — Hundreds of children in Vigo County are stocked up with food for the start of summer thanks to donations from the community.

Image of some of the food included

250 backpacks were filled with food for children this summer thanks to your donations to our annual “Pack it Back” program. The effort is to ensure that children have food during their summer break and even provide them with a new backpack for the upcoming school year. 

This year, with the help of Toyota of Terre Haute, Baesler’s, Crane Credit Union, Valley Professionals Community Health Center, Wabash Valley Children’s Dentistry and other local businesses, we collected perishable food donations for several weeks. 

“What better cause could there be than for the kids,” Bill Lutes, General Manager of Toyota of Terre Haute, said.

Thursday morning, some of our staff members and volunteers headed to Toyota of Terre Haute to fill all of the backpacks with the food. 

The backpacks were filled with non-perishable items such as cereal and granola bars.

“Our team here, our group looks so forward to this every year, you know getting involved with the community, get people from the community helping, Channel 2 of course and the Vigo County School Corporation so it’s something we’re all really excited about,” Lutes said.

The backpacks were taken to the Vigo County School Corporation where they will be delivered to students.