MATT GENTRY The Roanoke Times

Kiwanis Club of Christiansburg member Jeff Roberts nibbles on a cookie as the club prepares nutritious snacks for Christiansburg Head Start students. The club prepares snack bags in a meeting room of the NRV Superbowl for children to take home over the weekend.

MATT GENTRY The Roanoke Times

The Kiwanis Club of Christiansburg prepares snack bags for students of Head Start to take home over the weekend. "We can tell the difference on Monday mornings," said Anne Faris, the site administrator for Blacksburg and Christiansburg's Head Start programs.

CHRISTIANSBURG -- The little tykes at Head Start haven't yet caught on to the days of the workweek.

They don't know that Wednesday is hump day or that TGIF represents Friday's call letters.

These kids just want to know about one day of the week: "Each day they ask, 'Is it backpack day? Is it backpack day?' " said Anne Faris, the site administrator for Blacksburg and Christiansburg's Head Start, a federally funded program providing early childhood education for low-income families.

The children in Christiansburg's program -- mostly 3- and 4-year-olds -- really love backpack day.

And members of the Kiwanis Club of Christiansburg say they really love making it possible.

Every Thursday, the Kiwanians gather at the NRV Superbowl to stuff animal crackers, apples, bagels, peanut butter, juice boxes and other healthy snacks into bright blue packs with the Kiwanis Club insignia. The children get their backpacks Friday afternoon and bring them back empty Monday morning. The treats inside ensure a weekend of nutritious alternatives to the "junk" foods many kids wolf down in their leisure time.

"My involvement with the Radford-Fairlawn Daily Bread got me thinking about this," said Jerry Higgins, the man who initiated the program in Christiansburg in October. A member of the Kiwanis Club for 17 years, Higgins said he learned of a similar program in Marion when he attended a club meeting there.

The Marion club supports the program financially, but members don't shop for or assemble the snack packs.

According to Higgins, that's the best part of the program for the Christiansburg Kiwanians.

"These guys have seized on this thing like it's the best thing since sliced bread," he said. "They're chomping at the bit."

"It's a great program," Glenn Wilson said last week as he plopped Nutri-Grain bars into backpacks. "I think the kids have enjoyed it."

Wilson, a 20-year member of the Kiwanis Club, said his children are now grown and away from home, but he does have five grandchildren.

"They want a snack every time they visit," he said, "especially after school. We've all learned how to be a little more nutritious from doing this."

Brandice Hartsock, a member of the club for five years, said he and his wife have no children yet but hope to start a family next year. He said providing the snacks for children is fulfilling -- and filling. He and other Kiwanians were including small baggies of Oreo cookies in last week's pack. They couldn't help but sneak a cookie in the process.

"They've got to have a little something," he said of the delicious, but not very nutritious, Oreos. "We try not to give them a lot."

"It only takes us 15 or 20 minutes a meeting to do this," Hartsock added. "It doesn't take much time at all, but it's significant."

Faris said she thinks the backpack program has helped the children in many ways.

"We can tell the difference on Monday mornings," she said, noting that the children are more alert and ready to learn when they have a healthy diet during the weekend. She said the program also has helped educate parents about the importance of good nutrition.

"It's very good in that they put a feedback sheet in the backpack each week for parents to fill out," Faris said. "If there's something the child doesn't like, they try not to put that in there again."

In the past school year, the Kiwanis Club provided snacks for 39 Head Start children. During the summer months, the number will drop to about half that.

Kiwanian Teddy McCracken said the club hopes to grow the program in the future.

"We hope to expand it eventually to include the brothers and sisters in the family," he said. "With the cost of groceries and gas, there's little disposable income these days. I'm sure this helps."

Kroger and Wal-Mart stores have helped provide snacks, Higgins said. Several local churches have contributed, as well. The NRV Superbowl, where the Kiwanis Club meets each Thursday, provided a storage closet for the snacks.

Higgins said everyone involved with the backpack program has responded with enthusiasm and generosity.

That hasn't surprised him.

"Everyone wants to feel like they're doing something worthwhile," he said. "When you're talking about kids and nutrition, that hits everybody's heart."