ASSEMBLY LINE — Students from Jefferson County Christian School’s Class of 2020 participated in the school’s Feed the Need Packing Party in 2019. From left are Jules Clutter, Claire Novaski, Olivia Chanoski and Abby Dennis. -- Contributed

WINTERSVILLE — An ongoing fundraising campaign by the Jefferson County Christian School seeks to bless the school and thousands of families facing hunger, locally and globally.

JCCS is accepting sponsors for its Feed the Need fundraiser, which will see students gather on Feb. 28 to pack 10,000 meals for individuals experiencing food insecurity in the Ohio Valley and Bangladesh.

The school aims to raise $75,000 to cover the cost of several renovation and improvement projects at its Wintersville facility. Donations can be made by visiting myjccs.org and following the Feed the Need link.

In November 2019, JCCS hosted its first Feed the Need campaign, raising nearly $60,000 and packaging 10,000 meals — 8,500 of which were sent to Haiti, while the rest went to Urban Mission Ministries Inc. Funds allowed JCCS to remodel its science room and kitchen, enabling the school to begin serving hot meals.

JCCS hopes to repeat that success with this year’s campaign, which launched in January.

“This year, our average expenses per student is more than $700 more than our average tuition that we collect, so there’s a tuition gap,” said JCCS business manager Kathy Martin. “We are reliant on grants and fundraisers to fill that gap, and we didn’t want to do just any kind of fundraiser. … We’ve done walk-a-thons and things, but this teaches our kids to give back.”

JCCS partners with the Champion Group, a fundraising consultant for Christian Schools, to present its Feed the Need program. Champion provides supplies and sponsorship software, in exchange for a portion of funds raised, which JCCS presents as a “tithe,” Martin said.

Fundraising will culminate Feb. 28 with a Feed the Need Packing Party at JCCS. Students from every class — pre-school to 12th grade — will contribute toward packing 10,000 meals in a single session.

Working as an assembly line, students will place rice, protein powder and dried vegetables in bags, which will be sealed and handed over to be packaged into boxes. Younger students will help by drawing pictures that are included in the boxes.

“The event itself is exciting,” Martin said. “We’ve got music playing. If you’re not in there working, every time we do like five boxes, we go across the loudspeakers so the whole school knows we’re reaching these milestones, as we progress. It really is a lot of fun.”

Most of the meals — 8,500 — will be given to an orphanage in Bangladesh, with the remainder being distributed among the Urban Mission, Friendship Room and Pittsburgh Dream Center. This year’s additional meal recipients came from JCCS families’ recommendations, Martin said.

Funds from this year’s campaign will be used for replacing some flooring in the school, improving technology and replacing some elementary classroom furniture.

In a donation request letter, JCCS Principal Scott Abercrombie said that Feed the Need “serves as an incredible act of service but also provides our students with the transformative experience of giving to others in Jesus’ name.”

“At JCCS, we are dedicated to nurturing both the minds and spirits of our students. Through a Christ-centered education, we aim to instill good character, foster discipleship and equip our students to serve others with compassion and love. The Feed the Need Packing Party exemplifies this mission by bringing our school community together to share hope and make a tangible difference in the lives of families experiencing food insecurity.”