Karlen Rios and her partner walked quickly along a table set up in a large room inside Wilson High School on Friday morning.
As they moved, they plucked items from tables and placed them in a bag. They dropped in two packs of Pop-Tarts, a pair of granola bars, two juice boxes and two microwavable Chef Boyardee meals.
They added a card, decorated by Wilson elementary school students and featuring supportive messages like “You got this,” “Believe in yourself” and “Think positive.”
When the bag was full, they grabbed a new one and started again.
It wasn’t complicated work, it wasn’t a backbreaking task. But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t important.
The bags Rios and her partner, along with dozens of other Wilson 10th-graders, were filling were for Helping Harvest’s Weekender Backpack Program. The food bank hands out the bags to more than 4,300 kids across Berks and Schuylkill counties each Friday, ensuring they have something to eat over the weekend when they’re not in school.
That’s something deeply personal to Rios.
“I went with my mom to food banks to get boxes of food in the past,” she said.
Wilson High School sophomore Karlen Rios, 16, packs a weekend lunch bag during a districtwide day of service on Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
Rios said she knows all too well what it feels like to be food insecure and to rely on the help of others to get by.
“It feels good to be able to help other kids that are in the same spot as I was,” she said. “There may be some people who think this is not doing much, but I know that it really is. There are a lot of people depending on these bags.”
And that’s why Rios was more than willing to pitch in.
“This is a way to pay it forward,” she said. “Helping others will inspire others to help down the road. I know that’s the case for me because I’m giving back what I was once given.”
Rios’ efforts on Friday, along with those of her classmates, was part of the Bulldogs Give Back initiative. It’s an effort to have Wilson students serve the community and coincides with the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service recognized nationwide on Monday.
Assistant Superintendent Andrew Hoffert came up with the idea. He said it reflects the district’s commitment to service learning and its overall attempt to emphasize compassion, civic responsibility and community engagement.
“We value service learning here,” he said. “It’s a key component of trying to build a foundation for a future where students want to give back to their community.”
Dr. Andy Hoffert, Wilson School District assistant superintendent collects packed weekend lunch bags during a districtwide day of service on Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
Hoffert said the goal was to get as many students from all grade levels as involved as possible, and they decided to focus on addressing food insecurity. The district reached out to Helping Harvest to provide the food and Redner’s Markets to donate the bags.
Educational aspect
Throughout the day, Wilson students and staff worked to support two Helping Harvest programs. The Weekender Backpack Program, which provides bags of food to more than 4,300 food-insecure students every Friday. And the Care Packages Program that offers immediate relief for unhoused individuals through easy-to-consume items.
Completing the tasks was just part of the mission. The district invited the Youth Volunteer Corps in Berks County to handle the education component.
Lindsay Sites, program director for Youth Volunteer Corps, said members of the organiation’s staff visited classrooms earlier in the week to make certain the students realized the impact of what they were doing.
“We wanted them to know that they are doing so much more than just putting things in bags — they are helping to feed 10,000 kids,” she said. “Because if they don’t understand why it matters they will be less likely to do it again.”
Sites said students were informed about what it means for someone to be food insecure and that nearly 12% of Wilson students are among them. They were told about Helping Harvest and its mission.
“The students were shocked by how many of their peers are going through this, and many of them didn’t know what it meant to be food insecure,” she said. “I was a little surprised by that, but I think it’s just something that we don’t talk about enough. I wonder how many students in other districts are in the same boat and if they knew, would they do something about it?”
Wilson High School sophomores Clair Volker, 15, left, and Angela Good, 16, make cards for the weekend lunch bags during a districtwide day of service on Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
Nivanni Wise said she was happy she could do something about it. The sophomore was among those assembling bags of food.
“I really like this project because it will show the kids who get the bags that people care about them and are trying to make sure they have what they need,” she said. “I think the kids will really appreciate it and be grateful.”
Wise said she believes the project was a fitting way to pay tribute to the legacy of a man who advocated for the rights of those who were oppressed.
“Martin Luther King cared about his community and this is our way to show that we care about our community,” she said.
Wilson High School sophomores place weekend lunch bags into boxes for distribution during a districtwide day of service on Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
Wilson High School sophomores pack weekend lunch bags during a districtwide day of service on Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)