Washington D.C. – area Simon Premium Outlet Centers to host drive benefiting Blessings in a Backpack August 1–28

Washington D.C.-area Simon Premium Outlet Centers announced today their plans to partner with Blessings in a Backpack, a non-profit organization dedicated to ending childhood hunger by providing hunger-free weekends for elementary school children, for a back-to-school drive. From Monday, August 1–Sunday, August 28, Hagerstown Premium Outlets, Leesburg Corner Premium Outlets and Queenstown Premium Outlets will serve as host centers for the drive, collecting school supplies and monetary donations from shoppers and traveling patrons.

Blessings in a Backpack is a volunteer-driven organization that is feeding the future of America, one food-filled backpack at a time. Founded in 2008, Blessings currently serves 2,810 children in the Washington D.C. area and over 89,000 children in 1,000 schools nationwide.

“We cherish our community and strive to support our neighbors in many ways, which is why we jumped at the opportunity to team up with such an impactful organization like Blessings in a Backpack,” said Angie Riford, director of marketing and business development at Hagerstown Premium Outlets. “Our goal with this drive is to provide young learners with a great start to the new school year and continue to support their educational career for months to come.”

Donations collected through this partnership will contribute to the growth of the Blessings programs in the Washington D.C. area. For every $2.65 donated during the drive, a child will be hunger-free for one weekend. Shoppers who donate $100 will feed one child for an entire school year.

Participating shoppers who contribute a monetary donation of at least $10 will receive a Blessings in Style voucher, offering additional savings of 25 percent off one item, to use while shopping for back-to-school must-haves. Guests who prefer to donate supplies and canned goods may drop their items by Guest Services and receive a free Savings Passport, valued at $5 each.

“We are thankful for this partnership in support of our Washington D.C.-area programs. It’s because of partners like Hagerstown Premium Outlets, Leesburg Corner Premium Outlets and Queenstown Premium Outlets that we are able to continue with our mission to end childhood hunger,” said Nikki Grizzle, chief marketing officer of Blessings in a Backpack.