Even a cursory review of recent news will show that the number of people who are hungry in the United States has increased dramatically over the past three years. I met yesterday with some volunteers who are working with our Mission Backpack program and one of them mentioned that one of our elementary schools (we have 51 in our district) has gone from 21% free and reduced price meal participation to 52% since 2007. The school, located in an area with a lot of manufacturing and construction employment, is a snapshot of what is happening across the United States.
Children are hungry through no fault of their own. While kids are usually hungry because their parents are struggling financially and spending the bulk of their income keeping a roof over their family’s head, some kids are hungry because the adults in their household are impaired, or irresponsible, or neglectful or abusive.
The reality is it doesn’t matter why. It just matters. It matters because hungry kids have difficulty concentrating and learning. They miss more days of school because of illnesses. They don’t sleep well and are not prepared for learning because of it.
Even if your kids are grown and gone, it matters because every child who fails to succeed in school has the potential to cost all of us more throughout their lives. It matters because many of these hungry kids won’t be able to fill jobs as nurses and teachers and firefighters and police officers.
It matters because hungry kids aren’t a statistic. They’re hungry.
Find out what you can do. Call your local elementary school and find out if they have a program to support high risk kids with weekend food. If they don’t, start one. It matters.
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