Grandparent Bags!  Or Student Care Bags!

What would you put in a care package for your college age child?   How would you gently lift up a stressed young adult?  What small thing would make a college student smile?

Student care bags are meant to bring a spot of love to an already stressed existence.  These bags consist of three things:

• A bag
• A note
• Fun or yummy items

The bags should be small, the notes should be short and the items should be few.

BAGS:

These should be small.  Any kind of bag can be used…fabric, paper or reusable plastic (not single-use).  These probably won’t be returned so consider them a gift.  However, they could be reusable by the students.  Examples include paper lunch bags decorated by youth, simple fabric bags that could be reused as a gift bag, or a reusable, sealable bag decorated with stickers and sharpie.  Let your fun side emerge when designing and decorating these bags.

NOTES:

These notes should be short, handwritten notes of encouragement and love like you would write to a (grand)child in college.  It is optional to sign the notes with your name and contact information.  The students served by Agape come from all faith backgrounds or no faith background.  Please be sensitive to this as you write your notes.  Remind the students that they are loved, they are smart, they are worthy, they are resilient, they are the future, they are accepted, they are courageous…the notes should be uplifting and inspiring.  You don’t know who will grab that bag so be sure that your note is caring and applicable to all people.

ITEMS:

The items in the bag can be edible treats or fun little items.  The edible items should be shelf-stable since we won’t know how long they will be waiting for a home.  Due to allergies and dietary restrictions, please avoid nuts and gluten.  If the bags contain either of these, please prepare a few without and label them as such.  The fun items should be small because most students don’t have much storage space and they should be inexpensive.  Examples include individual bags of chips, cookies or crackers, dollar store toys, playing cards, craft kits, stress balls, stickers, office supplies later in the year, fidgets, etc.  Absolutely no cash, gift cards or items of high value.

The bags will be placed out for students to grab during the weekly pizza event.  All students will be welcome to take a bag with them.  In fact, they will be encouraged to take one to brighten their day.  If you wish to prepare themed bags, please contact Agape for suggestions.