Most kids now free from the shackles of formal education: sleeping in, playing all day and eating at their leisure. However, there are many children whose summer does not have such appealing prospects. They are anxious. Not attending school means not knowing where their next meal is coming from and there are thousands, yes, thousands in San Mateo County.
Eight-year-old Angela is one. “My parents both work but they don’t get paid very much. With the rent, we can’t pay for food,” she said. “It’s hard for us. There was this time when I came home from school I was really hungry but there wasn’t anything to eat. When you’re hungry it feels bad. I was kind of worried.”
According to California Food Policy Advocates’ 2010 Nutrition and Food Insecurity Profile for San Mateo County, 19,520 students in San Mateo County participate in the free or reduced-price lunch program and 7,015 students participate in the free or reduced-priced breakfast program.
Whatever your views on subsidies school lunch and breakfast programs; you have to agree with Angela, when you’re hungry, it does feel bad. Fortunately, San Mateo County has the Second Harvest Food Bank. They will provide food to more than 35,000 children in San Mateo County this summer.
Second harvest Food Bank launched its Share Your Lunch campaign this month to raise awareness about childhood hunger during the summer and ensure that local children get enough to eat. “Childhood hunger is a serious problem that can hamper children’s healthy growth and development, which affects their ability to do well in school,” said Kathy Jackson, CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties. “We want to make sure children have enough nutritious food to eat this summer so they can stay healthy and start school in the fall ready to learn.”
How can we help this magnanimous program that safeguards our less fortunate neighbors?
According to spokesperson Caitlin Kerk, the community can join Second Harvest in preventing childhood hunger this summer by supporting Share Your Lunch. They can give online at www.SHFB.org or by calling 866-234-3663. Every $10 donated provides a meal for 20 children.
“I really love the food from the Food Bank,” said Angela. “It’s great because now we get to eat and pay the rent. I don’t worry as much and get to eat when I come home from school. My favorite food is a turkey sandwich with toasted cheese. I put a pear in there when my mom’s not looking!”
Families who are concerned about feeding their children this summer can call Second Harvest Food Bank’s Food Connection hotline at 800-984-3663 to learn about food assistance programs that can help.
No comments:
Post a Comment