Big 2's Poptart Drive to Benefit Food 2 Kids
By: Big 2 News Staff
Updated: September 24, 2012
ODESSA/MIDLAND -- As many as 8,000 students in the Basin go hungry every weekend during the school year. Their struggling families are financially hurting because they can't keep pace with higher rent or property taxes the boom has created. So, hundreds of families choose to pay the pills over buying food for the family.
The non-profit, Food 2 Kids, now in its third year has been working relentlessly to feed these chronically hungry children.
Twice a month bags are prepped, food sorted and a room full of volunteers put together meals for kids who go without food over the weekends. Volunteer Minka Sibert with Cisco Equipment has been sacking for Food 2 Kids since it's start and says students can't learn on an empty stomach.
"We've got to feed these kids," says Sibert.
Libby Campbell with Food 2 Kids says campus staff are taught what to look for when identifying hungry children. "They are the ones that are lethargic Monday mornings, they ask for seconds, they will steal from their neighbors, they usually make friends with cafeteria workers because they may get more," explains Campbell.
Once a kid is identified for Food 2 Kids, it's kept confidential and during recess that's when a sack is placed in a Food 2 kid's back-pack. Campbell says students will actually go up to their bags and press against their back-packs and make sure their sacks are in there because its a need for these kids.
"What are you going to pay for? your rent or your house and the electric bill. Or, are you going to pay for food and not have a place to live," says Libby.
Which is a challenge so many more families are facing in the Basin. Food 2 kids started out as an idea and has grown into a full scale operation. 3 years ago, Food 2 Kids was in 2 schools with 300 kids in the program. Now, they feed more than 1200 students in 8 different elementary schools in ECISD. Food 2 Kids is working to expand to Midland and Monohans. Campbell says the program is designed to be a controlled growth.
"Some of these kids have been let down over and over again and we don't want to be one of those groups that are here one year, but not that next year," explains Campbell.
About 12-14 items go in to each bag. It costs $4 a bag or $168 for one kid an entire school year.
Big 2 news is holding a Poptart drive for Food 2 Kids. The drive will go on for the next 4 weeks, ending on October 17, 2012. There are several poptart drop off locations including: all Western National Bank Locations in Midland and Odessa, HEB in Odessa, Sewell Ford in Odessa, Cisco Equipment in Odessa, Crossroads Fellowship in Odessa and the West Texas Food Bank in Odessa.
The non-profit, Food 2 Kids, now in its third year has been working relentlessly to feed these chronically hungry children.
Twice a month bags are prepped, food sorted and a room full of volunteers put together meals for kids who go without food over the weekends. Volunteer Minka Sibert with Cisco Equipment has been sacking for Food 2 Kids since it's start and says students can't learn on an empty stomach.
"We've got to feed these kids," says Sibert.
Libby Campbell with Food 2 Kids says campus staff are taught what to look for when identifying hungry children. "They are the ones that are lethargic Monday mornings, they ask for seconds, they will steal from their neighbors, they usually make friends with cafeteria workers because they may get more," explains Campbell.
Once a kid is identified for Food 2 Kids, it's kept confidential and during recess that's when a sack is placed in a Food 2 kid's back-pack. Campbell says students will actually go up to their bags and press against their back-packs and make sure their sacks are in there because its a need for these kids.
"What are you going to pay for? your rent or your house and the electric bill. Or, are you going to pay for food and not have a place to live," says Libby.
Which is a challenge so many more families are facing in the Basin. Food 2 kids started out as an idea and has grown into a full scale operation. 3 years ago, Food 2 Kids was in 2 schools with 300 kids in the program. Now, they feed more than 1200 students in 8 different elementary schools in ECISD. Food 2 Kids is working to expand to Midland and Monohans. Campbell says the program is designed to be a controlled growth.
"Some of these kids have been let down over and over again and we don't want to be one of those groups that are here one year, but not that next year," explains Campbell.
About 12-14 items go in to each bag. It costs $4 a bag or $168 for one kid an entire school year.
Big 2 news is holding a Poptart drive for Food 2 Kids. The drive will go on for the next 4 weeks, ending on October 17, 2012. There are several poptart drop off locations including: all Western National Bank Locations in Midland and Odessa, HEB in Odessa, Sewell Ford in Odessa, Cisco Equipment in Odessa, Crossroads Fellowship in Odessa and the West Texas Food Bank in Odessa.
