Back Back Angels "NEWS"
We Need Help And Are Looking For Volunteers To Step Forward
WE HAVE VACANT BOARD POSITIONS:
Community Relations and Publicity,
Fundraising.
WE WOULD LOVE YOUR HELP!
Please contact Susan- 508 498 5001
Meetings Resumed
We have resumed our volunteer general meeting.
Please check our Calendar for time and location
General Meeting Minutes
North Port Coalition for the Homeless/Needy Children, Inc.
Back Pack Angels General Meeting
May General Meeting Minutes
September 2nd 2025
The general meeting was called to order at 10:11 by Naomi Jodoin at AMVET 312.
The mission statement was read by all.
New Members: We welcomed new members Kim Cahill and Diane Sullivan.
Minutes: The March Board Meeting and General Meeting minutes were accepted and are available on the website.
Financial Report:
Jeanne read the financial report. Income was $31,933.03 and expenses were $13,886.46.
Board Positions Needed:
We need a Publicist, a Volunteer Coordinator and a Grant Writer. Susan is almost at the end of her term as Volunteer Coordinator. She is willing to take on some grant writing when she steps down. She will also train the new Volunteer Coordinator.
Fundraising:
AMVETS Ladies Dinner: Dinner is Saturday, Sept. 13 from 5-7 pm. Naomi has tickets, and the Amvets will also be selling tickets. Judy will touch base with Talon Bay. Judy will pass out our flyer tomorrow at the Chamber meeting. The Amvets will hold a pound auction, and we will have a 50/50 raffle.
Golf Outing: MedG is holding a golf outing on October 25th.. Half of the proceeds will come to Back Pack Angels. They would like 2 or 3 volunteers from our group to help out that day. They also are having a raffle for a golf cart - $100 ticket with only 265 being sold. One of the men in the group also offered his truck if we ever needed it.
Applebees: Date for the breakfast fundraiser has been changed to Saturday, Dec. 13th. Our volunteers will serve and sell tickets for a 50/50 and a gift card tree.
Spring Fundraiser: The Board discussed and decided to have our annual Bunco fundraiser the second week of March. It will be titled Spring Fling. We need to check with the church for an available date.
Bags:
Small 783, Large 160 for a total of 943 bags to be packed for September.
Judy said one of the schools is moving to Port Charlotte. so we won’t be doing them anymore. Wellen Park wanted a form for parents, but Judy explained that if they don’t need the items, we don’t give them. Wellen Park will let us know.
Judy said all products are ordered. She will substitute shampoo for detergent this month as Dollar Tree no longer delivers to store and is charging around $500 to deliver directly. Jeanne will check with Home Depot to see if they would donate detergent.
Volunteer Coordinator:
Sorting day is Friday, September 12th at 9 am; Packing and Delivery Day is Monday, September 15th at 9 am.
This will be our first time in the new storage space, so adjustments will have to be made.There is a building entrance code which Susan will give to those who volunteer. Susan could use a few more volunteers.
Judy mentioned 2 of our carts have wheels that need replaced. Frank knows what they need and will get them at Home Depot. Frank will replace them.
Naomi asked the woman in the storage place if we could place a box in lobby. She said she would check but didn’t think so, as they wouldn’t let the Animal Shelter have a donation jar. Frank inquired if the Animal Shelter rents storage space. If not, we might have an advantage. Naomi will check.
Website:
Frank has updated the website and Facebook page with flyers for Amvets dinner and golf outing.
Naomi stated that Joe’s Barber Shop is upset because the patrons give at least $60 a month and have not been recognized on FB. Naomi agreed something should be done. Naomi and Frank will add thank you postings to Facebook for Joe’s Barber shop and other consistent contributors.
Someone asked what the Facebook page is: Frank said it is North Port Coalition Homeless/Needy Children, Inc Back Pack Angels. I tried it and once you put a little of the title in, the page comes up. But then you need to click on it for current postings. There seems to also be an older version on there too.
Grants:
Gulf Coast Community Foundation - $10,000
Jolly Family Foundation - $8,500.00
Dianne Patterson Trust - $10,000.00
Scrapbook:
Linda said she’s been working on and should have the next 3 years ready by our next meeting. She is looking for items for scrapbook: memories, notes, pictures, especially of Dianne to go with her obit.
Diane Sullivan asked how long our organization has been around – 15 Years!
Other Business:
San Pedro Church: Donations from an adult group are ongoing. We need to acknowledge this. We also received a large supply of school supplies from them, which we will distribute in bags and at events. The Youth group at San Pedro will probably do another box during Lent.
Upcoming events that BPA participates in: Newcomers Day:, North Port Night Out: , Poinsettia Day:
When we get the dates and times for these three events, we will need volunteers for each.
Plantation Community: Naomi picked up donations from them. Diane Picaggio, who was a founding member of BPA, lives in this community. Her husband wants a box there all the time, but for now it’s only there sporadically.
This led to a question of how many of the founding members are still in the area. Frank said he had attempted to contact all of them when we had Jan’s Memorial, but that he only heard from Diane Picaggio and Cheryl Doyle. Naomi suggested we acknowledge them (and try to contact others again), for our 15th anniversary, perhaps with a luncheon.
T-Shirts: Jeanne found a company for t-shirts and golf type shirts. She will bring a sample to the next meeting.
Statistics: Judy shared that last year we did 9,474 bags. For products we paid $42,775 to Dollar Days, $2,164 to Prime (toilet paper), and $1,605.00 to Dollar Tree.
Kim Cahill asked how do students know about us, is our information in the bags they receive? Judy stated she contacts principals and social workers for numbers of children in need. Kim said she is a teacher and they always had a newsletter. She felt our events could be included in something like this to get the information about us out there. We feel like we are becoming more of a presence in the community, but Kim’s suggestion is an excellent one.
Naomi adjourned the meeting at 11:09.
OUR NEXT GENERAL MEETING IS
TUESDAY October 7, 2025 @ 10:00 at
AMVETS 312, 750 Chancellor Avenue