Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, and Christian residents of the Quad Cities are joining together to feed Syrian refugees this weekend. But, they still need a lot of help. On Saturday, Kids Against Hunger hopes to package and mail 250,000 meals, but they're still about $60,000 short in donations.
Kids Against Hunger President Pam Gettert says several religious communities approached her, wanting to start an interfaith effort to aid Syrian refugees. They've raised over $5,000 so far, to send food to refugee camps in Greece and Jordan.
Gettert says each packaged vegan meal can feed a family of six, and one shipping container will hold 256,000 meals. Kids Against Hunger still needs about $60,000, to purchase enough meals and cover the $16,000 shipping cost.
And, 160 volunteers are needed every hour to package the meals, from 8 am until 6 pm. Gettert says the group will ship what they can on Saturday, and hold other packaging events if needed.
Kids Against Hunger's "Feeding the Refugees" packaging event begins with set-up at 6 am, at the Waterfront Convention Center in Bettendorf.
To donate or volunteer, contact Kids Against Hunger at 563-326-4419.