During Catholic Schools Week, Student Outreach Coordinator Susan Strawbridge and the Romero Service Club invited John Carroll students to participate in a service activity where they could fill “blessing bags” for those in need.

By creating a bag, a student was able to receive one direct hour of service.
Several John Carroll students participated in filling the bags for those in need.
Mrs. Strawbridge commented, “The response was overwhelming. There were too many to count, but it had to be over 1,000 bags. It took three car loads.”
The bags were filled with personal hygiene items including, shampoo, conditioner, soap, body wash, hand sanitizer, mouth wash, lotion, toothbrushes, toothpaste, floss, lip balm, feminine products, tissues, band-aids, wipes, wash rags, and socks. Students were also asked to create Valentine’s Day cards to place in their bags in order to spread cheer.
The abundance of hygiene products were delivered to Harford Community Action Agency & Food Pantry. This program helps to support those who are less fortunate and experiencing homelessness in Harford County. By creating blessing bags, students were able to make these people’s days a little bit brighter. Other programs that the bags were delivered to included St. Margaret Church, St. Francis de Sales, Bel Air United Methodist, Mt. Zion Church, and Bel Air Assisted Living and Abingdon Gardens.
In regard to where the idea for the blessing bags came from, Mrs. Strawbridge revealed that she figured creating the bags would be a COVID-friendly activity for students to gain service hours. She said, “A few years back we collected individual items and then filled bags as an afternoon schoolwide service project, but because of COVID restrictions, this couldn’t happen. We thought this would be a nice family project.”
Currently, the Romero Service Club is not accepting any more donations for blessing bags. However, there are many other service opportunities that students can participate in, especially during these unprecedented times.
In order to constantly have service opportunities presented to them, students can ask Mrs. Strawbridge about joining the Romero Service Club. The club constantly provides students with service opportunties, including a future schoolwide service project which will be happening in March. This project will be called, “Stock up the House!” It will be a food and household drive held by the Romero Service Club and NHS from March 15-25. Students can also be reminded of upcoming service opportunities by joining the P.A.S.S. Ministries Remind group by texting @passmin to 81010.
Other service opportunities that students can participate in include Family Food Distribution where students can help to deliver and distribute food to families in need. This service opportunity runs from 7:30 am-noon on February 20, April 17, May 15, June 19, July 17, August 21, and September 18. It is located at Bel Air United Methodist Church, 21 Linwood Avenue, Bel Air.
Students may also volunteer at Habitat ReStore where they can help with customer service and donation processing on Tuesdays from 9:00 am-4:00 pm, Wednesdays-Fridays from 10:00 am-6:00 pm, and Saturdays from 9:00 am-4:00 pm. Habitat Restore is located at 1013 Beards Hill Road, Aberdeen.
Finally, a student can earn two direct service hours for making a casserole for Our Daily Bread. Students should visit John Carroll’s website for more information.
For other opportunities or for more information on service activities, students should visit John Carroll’s website under the Campus Ministry section.