By JULIE CARLE
BG Independent News
Jack Smith is doubling down for his 12th birthday goal.
After collecting and donating more than 500 items to the Brown Bag Food Project for his 2022 birthday, the Bowling Green sixth grader has officially set a goal to collect at least 1,000 items by the time his Dec. 18 birthday rolls around.
For most of his life, Jack has had a soft spot for helping people, his mother, Ellen Fure Smith explained a year ago. He started what would become a tradition at his fourth birthday party when he asked guests to bring canned goods, boxed pasta, pet food or money donations instead of a birthday gift.
This year marks the ninth consecutive year he has asked for the items instead of birthday gifts.
Read the story from 2022 after he raised 505 items, up from 243 in 2021.
With the ambitious goal to deliver 1,000 items to the food pantry that is just two blocks from his house, he knew he needed to up the game by expanding the net beyond his previous house collection box and social media posts by his mother.
His pursuit to find an easily accessible public spot for a collection box was answered when the Wicks family generously agreed that Jack could place a box in Grounds for Thought. Needed items can be dropped off to help Jack reach his 1,000-item goal during regular business hours.
Monetary donations may be made via his mother’s Venmo account: (Ellen-Smith-63); just be sure to include “Jack’s Food Drive” in the description. They will collect donations through his birthday on Dec. 18 and then complete a big shopping trip before delivering items to the Brown Bag Food Project.
