A child’s chance for a bright future begins with getting enough food to eat today. Unfortunately, there are many children in our very own community that do not know where they will get their next meal. For these children facing hunger, getting the energy they need to learn and grow can be a daily challenge.
At Stepping Stones Foundation the goal of the Hunger Force program is to get nourishing food – from community gardens, local food pantries, manufacturers, and retailers – to people in need. At the same time, we also seek to help the people we serve to build a path to a brighter, food-secure future.
For kids who qualify for free or reduced-price meals, school breakfast or lunch may be the only meals they can count on. We supplement those meals by supplying snacks, lunches or funding lunch accounts.
So what happens when kids are not in school? Our program has worked to make sure that children have access to nutritious and easy-to-make meals for after school, weekends and summer. We provide weekly Referrals to our partners Community Table and Westwind Church Community Garden and the MetChurch Food Pantry for meals, groceries, and fresh produce. These are often delivered straight to the clients home.
In a crisis, we provide groceries or gift cards for meals. We also love to treat our clients with special meals during the Holidays. Having convenient, consistent access to healthy foods helps ensure that children never have to worry about their next meal, which in turn makes for happier, healthier kids.