In an attempt to combat child hunger, we at Kettleman City Family Resource Center, in collaboration with Community Food Bank, will be partnering with Kettleman City Elementary School to provide food for 50 students who have been determined to be chronically hungry. These children will be the beneficiaries of the BackPack Program, which is anticipated to commence at the end of January. We are all excited to launch the program, and are enthusiastic about being one of a handful of sites chosen to take part in this wonderful program.
The “Back Pack” concept was developed at the Arkansas Rice Depot, when a school nurse started noticing students with stomach aches and dizziness. She determined they weren’t suffering from flu or any other sickness, rather they were just hungry. This prompted the local food bank to begin providing the students with groceries to take home for the weekends. The BackPack Program was launched as a pilot program, and in 2006, due to its tremendous success, was declared a national program by the National Council at Feeding America. The beauty of the BackPack Program is that it alleviates childhood hunger by providing nutritious and easy to prepare food when children are most likely to not have a meal, such as weekends and vacations. The BackPack Program provides nonperishable and easy to prepare food items like cereal, popcorn, and microwavable macaroni and cheese.
This is especially important for Kettleman City, because we are considered a “low income” community, meaning the average household makes less than $10,890 annually and the majority of the population consists of seasonal agricultural workers. This is a place where most parents are forced to work long hours, weekends, and multiple jobs, to try to make ends meet – yet despite their efforts, continue to be completely destitute. At the same time, children are often left home alone after school and on weekends, with siblings, elderly family members or, no one at all. Consequently, children are faced with the challenge of preparing their own meals or going hungry until their parents get home, even then there is not promise of a meal.
To further emphasize how important nutrition is in child development, food is a physiological need which is essential to survival, along with water and sleep. The commonly referenced “hierarchy of needs”, suggests that these needs are instinctive and all other needs become secondary until the basic, fundamental physiological needs for food have been met. It seems rather obvious, a child will be unable to do any of those fun childhood things (like the things you and I probably did) if their growing cells aren’t being provided with any fuel to function, let alone grow and flourish. This need is so basic that most of us probably don’t even think about it, or realize how crucial the issue is. Imagine that a child would have tremendous difficulty concentrating in school, if they are distracted by their grumbling stomachs or worried about where they will get their next meal. The BackPack Program is so very important for these reasons.
Here at Kettleman City Family Resource Center, we are both excited and grateful to announce that we will be a part of this nation wide program. We would also like to invite the community to take part in any way, from volunteering, to donating items. The importance of this program to our community cannot be stressed enough, neither can our gratitude.
Intrested in helping the cause ? Contact the Community Food Bank at 559-237-3663
Article By Hugo Licea
Kings Community Action Organization
