Tony and Dolly Ellis

It's Friday, when we devote this space to reminding people of the fact that many kids who depend on school lunch programs are at risk of hunger over the weekend.     Sue Brockway, Tyson Community Relations, has long worked closely with River Bend Food Bank in Moline, Illinois.  She submits this entry today on the food bank's backpack program.

Research has shown that children who do not receive adequate nourishment during their developmental years experience impaired mental and physical development.  The sad reality is that there are many children who rely on resources such as free and reduced priced meals for their primary source of food and nutrition during the school year.  But what about weekends when these programs are not available to these at-risk children? In 2007 River Bend Foodbank piloted the Backpack Program to help stop the debilitating effects of childhood hunger and meet the needs of children over the weekend when there may be little or in some cases, no food to eat. 
Today the Backpack Program at River Bend Foodbank has grown to provide more than 800 children with nourishing food to take home for the weekend.  Foodpacks are discreetly distributed to the children on the last day before the weekend or holiday vacation throughout the school year. The food is nutritious, child friendly and easily consumed.
This program is so effective because of our partnership with 14 schools in the Quad Cities (Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois). School staff identifies the students who are most in need and distribute the food each week.  Each year we ask the teachers of the children who receive the food to complete a survey to help us determine how well the program is working. 
Here is a sampling of the comments on the surveys:

• One little boy told me very week that there was not food in the house. Since the Backpack Program, he has stopped saying that.
• I have a little boy in my class who would always say, ‘Is it Friday yet? Do I get to take home my food?
• The kids eat a lot of junk. This gives them something better to eat.
• One of my students said he wished he could get the backpack food every day.
• When Sarah got her food she told me: ‘I’m going to my aunt’s this weekend and I’m going to take my food with me!

River Bend Foodbank is an accredited member of Feeding America.  The Foodbank distributes nearly 5 million pounds of food to 22 counties on an annual basis.

By the way, if you know Sue Brockway, send her a note of congratulations. She's the most tireless and selfless hunger fighter we have at Tyson Foods.  We're all danged proud of her!

By Ed Nicholson

We've been focusing this space during the last few Fridays on talking about kids who depend on school lunch programs for their primary nutrition. Many of these children are in dire risk of going hungry from Friday lunch until Monday. 

This week, we've been recruited to be part of an exciting effort, focused on South by Southwest, the Pledge to End Hunger, which benefits our great friends Share Our Strength, as well as four Feeding America food banks.

One of those food banks, with which we've had the distinct honor of working closely in the past year is the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas. There's an excellent little piece about one of their childhood feeding programs, Kids Cafe, at the Pledge to End Hunger site.

Each Friday, hundreds of thousands of kids across America eat their last good meal until Monday.  But thanks to programs like these at the CAFB, those numbers are being reduced.

Go sign the Pledge to End Hunger. It's a great cause. And while you're online, go follow CAFBers, David Davenport, Lisa Goddard, Kerri Qunell and all these guys here on Twitter.

 It's Friday, the time we devote to reminding you of childhood hunger, and the many children who depend on weekday free lunches for their nourishment.  Daniel Buckley from Feeding America member the Food Bank for New York City, sent this account of the great work their food bank is doing in addressing the challenges faced by kids who might otherwise go hungry on the weekends.

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In 2007, the Food Bank For New York City took Feeding America’s model BackPack Program and made one simple but very significant modification. They took the national program – which provides children with bags of healthy food to take home – and merged it with the concept of a choice-style food pantry, calling it the Open Market BackPack Program.

Children accessing the Food Bank’s programs are able to fill their bags themselves, picking items from a selection of fresh produce and nutritious food. This activity helps children understand what goes into a healthy meal, while nurturing feelings of competency and self-sufficiency. Here is just one touching story of a child on whom this program made a great impression.

Told by a staff member of a domestic violence shelter that is a member of the Food Bank For New York City’s food assistance program network.

"John was a domestic violence shelter guest.  John, along with his mother and younger brother, were victims of mental, emotional and physical abuse. Fortunately, they found the courage to leave and come here.

"Before they came here, John had to leave his school and his mother had to leave her job because of the abuse, and money was scarce. John's mother has had a real hard time trying to make her money stretch so that the kids can have enough to eat. She's told me that our Open Market BackPack Program has been a real lifesaver for her children — it feels so great that our services can make such a difference. Being able to shop for themselves makes the kids feel responsible. John's a real sweet kid. It's obvious he feels that he's helping his family and feels real good about it.

"John's mother said that he never wants to miss an opportunity to participate in the program. She always makes a point to show how thankful and appreciative she is by returning the tote bags neatly folded so they can be used again."

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Be sure to check out the brand new Food Bank for New York City Blog.  As you've just seen, they have some compelling stories to tell.

120 Feeding America food banks have backpack programs to help kids like John.  You can help by donating food, funds or time to your local food bank. 

 

photo by PinkMoose--Creative Commons/flickr

On Friday's we've been devoting this space to childhood hunger as a reminder that there are kids whose primary nutritional needs are served by the school lunch program, who are often hungry on the the weekends.

This week's message comes from Michael Clark, COO of our invaluable communications partner, Mitchell Communications Group.

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Walt Kelly, cartoonist famed for creating the legendary American comic strip character “Pogo” is known for writing the phrase, “We have met the enemy and he is us.”  To that point, I’m reminded of a story from last year of how systems, processes and protocols that we have in place live up to this oddly accurate “pogopossum” philosophy.

True story: (names withheld for obvious reasons)
A child in our school system was going through the lunch line and picked out his meal, he arrives at the end of the line and according to district policy the cashier states. “I’m sorry, you don’t have enough money in your account,” sadly takes the tray away from the child and tosses the food into the trashcan and hands over a sack lunch; a white bread sandwich of processed cheese and a small fruit juice, and some kids might get lucky and get chips too.

What on earth?

Okay, I get that there are some folks that forget to fund their lunch accounts, really I get it, but to toss out decent food in exchange for a less balanced option is pretty unsettling to me.  Not to mention wasteful.  You see, we’re watching food become a far different story in society today. In more cases than not, we’re transitioning from luxury to livelihood and that’s because hunger is reaching people it has never touched before. Okay, so what can we do about this?

I’d like to think we can look into and get beyond the systems and policies we have in place.  Look at how they run on the frontline and think of ways that make the most common sense, despite wherever our kids stand in line or how much or little they have in their account.

We also need to look at what our children are being fed. Here’s an example of a breakfast menu.  French toast and syrup or cinnamon roll, fruit cup and chocolate milk.  It’s no wonder our children are having difficulty learning when I see them drinking sugar fortified milk, syrup soaked fruit and simple carbs for breakfast.  I can hear the teachers now, “Okay kids, sit down and stop climbing the walls and learn…it’s impossible.” 

So if your PTO/PTA or local businesses asks what we should focus on this year, here’s your answer.  Focus on nutritious, balanced food programs and backpack programs that will help our kids learn, live better and stay healthy.

Please share ideas on what you do or what you think we can do for our kids?

Go here and sign the Pledge to End Hunger, and Tyson will donate 35 pounds of food to a Feeding America food bank.

For the next couple of weeks, we'll be involved in a collaboration with a number of great partners, including our longtime friends Share Our Strength.  Designed to increase engagement in hunger relief, the Pledge to End Hunger will be highlighted in an online effort peaking at Austin's South by Soutwest festival, by social media superstars Beth Kanter and Chris Brogan. 

You can find out more about the Pledge to End Hunger here.  For every person who signs the pledge, Tyson will donate 35 pounds of food to the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas.  If we get 1000, signatures (a truckload of food), we'll continue donating, up to two truckloads of food to the states with the most signatures.

At Tyson Foods, we’ve always donated food to hunger relief.  But only in the past nine years, have we taken a strategic approach to doing it.

Some critical things we have learned:  We can leverage what we’re doing in making donations beyond the value of the food delivered.  We can use donation events to shine a spotlight on the need in our country.  We can engage new stakeholders.  We can create new awareness of the groups and people on the front lines of the fight against hunger.  And if by doing so, we bring a return on investment to our shareholders, we can keep the efforts sustainable, even when our company is not making a profit.

Social media have already proven to be natural and effective tools in expanding a critically-needed conversation in our country about hunger. 

We’re excited about the Pledge to End Hunger.  It brings new partners into the issue of hunger, and allows us to support Share Our Strength, who came alongside Tyson as a phenomenal partner when we made a formal commitment to hunger relief in 2000.  It’s built around the energy and enthusiasm of South by Southwest and offers the prospect of bringing thousands of new minds and fresh ideas to bear around a social problem that’s inexcusable in a country with the finest food production system in the world.
 

We can’t wait to see what happens. Please join us.

 

Photo Wikimedia Commons

By Ed Nicholson

Paul Harvey died on Saturday. 
He had a phenomenal run as a broadcast personality, in a career that spanned almost seventy years. 
Paul Harvey was a storyteller.  He didn't just deliver the news.  He wrapped it a package and delivered it with a style that made it interesting, even if you didn't agree with his transparently conservative opinion.  Did you ever listen through a thirty-second commercial, just to find out "the rest of the story?"  I did.
His passing reminded me of the power of storytelling.
Those of us who advocate for hunger frequently use facts and figures to  make our case.Those who advocate most effecitvely use stories. 
It's incredibly compelling to find out that food insecurity affects twelve and a half million children in the U.S.  But it can be more compelling to find out how it affects one particular child.  Especially if that child is living in your own neighborhood.
The best storytellers give us all something with which to connect personally.  What if I lost my job and had to depend on food assistance?  What if it were my child in the backpack program?  Maybe I should do something to help.

How are you using stories to make your case?