Giving away 150 backpacks filled with school supplies was not enough to satisfy a church’s desire to help young students in north Berwyn. So pastors are planning to budget for at least 250 next year.

The Christian Life Center church hosted its first annual back-to-school rally Sunday when more than 500 people attended for food, drinks, speakers and performances at Prairie Oak School in Berwyn. Children also received free physical examinations and child identification cards.

Associate pastor the Rev. Mike Pawletki, who organized the rally, said the event was not set up to be overtly religious and “peppered with Christian-ese” speech but rather a service to the community with no strings attached.

“We didn’t want to turn people off who needed help, and we figured we’d have a lot more success showing Christ than just telling about Christ,” Pawletki said. “He’s given everything to us for nothing; so we need to give that love back to those around us.”

The Berwyn church, 3409 S. Grove St., asked Mayor Michael O’Connor and school officials where in the community the need would be greatest, and he recommended north Berwyn. So, the south Berwyn church organized its 12 small group Bible studies, each with six to 12 people, for two weekends to put door hangers promoting the event to 10,000 homes north of the Burlington North Santa Fe Railway tracks.

“It was a pretty cool operation; we had it mapped out, strategized. One weekend was in the 90s, and when you go up and down steps of every house on eight blocks, it’s pretty rough ... our church members were really excited to be a part of it. That’s what we’re called to do; we don’t just want to serve the people in the church, but the community we reside in,” Pawletki said. “We know a lot of people are struggling at this time, especially with all the foreclosures, and there’s definitely a need in Berwyn, even if it’s not in your face, like it is in Chicago. We know that education is key to getting people out of that situation. The church believes in education; we value it, and we want to do whatever we can to help lift people up out of their financial difficulties.”

The first 150 children who were registered for the event received a backpack with school supplies required by the Berwyn public school districts, including rulers, scissors, crayons and pencils.

A Berwyn couple, the husband a doctor and the wife a registered nurse, conducted physical examinations and filled out the necessary paperwork for 23 children who requested the service. The couple also administered blood pressure tests for adults.

Hundreds of child identification cards, with fingerprints and photos for police to have in any event the child is missing, were issued. About 600 hot dogs were served and in the evening, there were guest speakers.

Superintendent Stan Fields of Berwyn South School District 100 spoke to the crowd about the importance of education, and the mayor addressed the parents and urged them to continue to support their children’s education. Berwyn North School District 98 administrators declined or were unavailable for an interview.

The church also gave away four gift cards from Target, iPods, a digital camera and a laptop through free raffle tickets to all attendants who registered.