Anamosa United Methodist youth group members pack lunches for the Anamosa Lunch for Youth progam. (Anamosa Lunch for Youth photo)

ANAMOSA – Syndicate, a barbershop quartet, will headline a concert at 6 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 9, at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, 107 E. First St.

The event will benefit the Anamosa Lunch for Youth, or ALY, program which provides sack lunches for children in need.

The faith-based group began last summer with Anamosa United Methodist and St. Paul’s Lutheran churches making sack lunches. Since then, First Baptist and First Congregational United Church of Christ members have joined the ALY board and rotate duties to pack food. The group receives occasional help from several other churches, as well as the Jones County 4-H Youth Council. The board meets monthly and everyone in the organization is a volunteer.

This summer, the group provided more than 50 sack lunches on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays with churches rotating days fixing sandwiches, fruit, snacks and a drink. ALY operates out of the Lawrence Community Center, and the lunches are delivered to area mobile home courts, subsidized housing, the public library and city park.

During the school year, the churches rotate each month packing the food that goes home each weekend with children who may be food-deprived. Items include cereals, fruit cups, snacks, juice, Ramen noodles, macaroni and cheese, protein items and other non-perishables. The sack lunches are then delivered to the local elementaryschool where the guidance counselors deliver them to selected students to take home for the weekend. Students are chosen from the free and reduced lunch lists

ALY has received grants from Community Partnerships for Protecting Children, Theisens More for Your Community, The Iowa United Methodist Foundation, Matthew 25, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and the United Methodist Bishops Ingathering.

The Anamosa community has also given monetary and food donations. More than $2,000 was raised at last year’s first community concert.

As well as Syndicate, several other musical groups will perform at Sunday’s concert, including the First Congregational adult choir, the Joyful Ringers of the United Methodist Church, Celebration Four Plus One from St. Paul Lutheran Church, Mark Robertson, RVBQ and the keyboard stylings of Scott Kelly and Phyllis Michels of First Congregational Church.

A free-will offering will be taken. The evening will end with a time of fellowship and refreshments. This concert is supplemented by a grant from Thrivent Financial for Lutherans.