A simple prayer: "Lord, even as we enjoy the Super Bowl football game, help us be mindful of those who are without a bowl of soup to eat" is inspiring a youth-led movement to help hungry and hurting people around the world.

This prayer, delivered by Brad Smith, then a seminary intern serving at Spring Valley Presbyterian Church in Columbia, SC, gave birth to an idea. Why not use Super Bowl weekend, a time when people come together for football and fun, to also unify the nation for a higher good: collecting dollars and canned food for the needy? Youth could collect donations at their schools and churches in soup pots, and then send every dollar DIRECTLY to a local charity of THEIR choice.

Since Souper Bowl of Caring was founded in 1990, it has grown every year. Here in Houston, Souper Bowl of Caring is bigger than ever! Last year over two million nutritious meals were raised to fight hunger in our community.

Each year, H-E-B, Kroger and Randalls team up with the Houston Texans, local media stations and other community partners to fight hunger in the community.  Shoppers purchase prepackaged bags of groceries and donate to the red barrel or donate cash during checkout.  The donations provide food at a local pantry in the Houston Food Bank’s 18 county service area. 

This year volunteers are needed to help encourage shoppers to make a donation or purchase a pre-made bag of food at their local Kroger or HEB Store on Saturday and Sunday January 18^th, 19^th, 25^th, 26^th and February 1^st and 2^nd. Volunteers can sign up directly. Volunteers age 8 – 15 can volunteer with a parent or guardian present. Volunteers 16 years and older are welcome to come on their own. This is a great opportunity for school groups, church groups, or families to give back right in their local community! A total of 13,176 volunteers are needed in total, please consider signing up to help!

If you would like to host a food drive at your school, church or youth group, please go to: www.souperbowl.org to register.