Backpack Snack Attack pre-Valentine’s Day dinner raises $7,380

WARWICK — The Backpack Snack Attack pre-Valentine’s Day dinner and fund raiser raised $7, 380 this past Monday evening, Feb. 11.

The event, supported by many local businesses, organizations and individuals, was hosted and sponsored by Grappa Ristorante at 22 Railroad Ave. in the Village of Warwick.

More than 40 people attended the dinner, the results of which, combined with raffle ticket sales, exceeded the fund raiser’s $7,000 goal and surpassed last year’s final tally of $5,700.

For the past four years elementary school children in this area have been taking advantage of Backpack Snack Attack, a charitable program designed to insure that needy children always have enough to eat.

The program is available to public elementary schools in Warwick, Florida, Pine Island, and Greenwood Lake.

Volunteers stuff backpacks with food for needy children to enable them to eat at home on weekends and during the summer when the free breakfast and lunch meals they receive at school are not available. There are almost 300 children currently enrolled.

The backpacks, with individually sized and ready to eat or microwave-ready food items, are sent home with the children every Friday and returned to the schools the following Monday.

Additional sponsors
Guests at the pre-Valentine’s Day dinner enjoyed salad, entrée and dessert along with soft drinks and a cash bar. Warwick Price Chopper donated the desserts.

Other sponsors included Apple a Day, Café Ala Mode, Candy Apple Shoppe, The Inkwell, Larry’s Deli, Benito’s Pizzeria, Franico’s Pizzeria, Chumley’s BBQ, Dautaj, DePace Family, Eclectic Eye, Hudson River Adventures, Momento, Murphy’s Restaurant, Sew-Cology, Grappa /LaPiazza, Playhouse of Museum Village, Peck’s Wines & Spirits and Michelle.

“We would like to add a special thank you to Tony and Nick and the rest of the Grappa staff for hosting this event,” said Back Pack Snack Attack volunteer Len Singer. “As a result of their support we have raised more than $20,000 in the four fund raisers in support of our program that we worked on together the last two years.”

- Roger Gavan