Food For Our Children tackles childhood hunger

SANDPOINT — For families who are struggling to put food on the table, the talk of an economic turnaround is just that — talk. A new non-profit organization called Food For Our Children (FFOC) has been formed to tackle the issue and get at the root of childhood hunger in Bonner County.

It takes some people aback, but kids from lower-income households do go without food. That alone is enough to require action, but, once the academic and social impacts of hunger are taken into account, it becomes a moral imperative.

“Unemployment is still a significant problem for Bonner County — we’re still in the recovery,” said Curt Hecker, an FFOC board member. “Building healthy kids is the right thing to do.”

Susan Edwards, principal at Sandpoint Head Start, welcomed the chance to serve on the board of directors, since the group shines a light on a population that often escapes community awareness.

“There’s no guesswork,” she said. “I know children are coming to school hungry, because I see it.”

The cause gained the attention of one of Sandpoint’s most active philanthropists, Dennis Pence, whose discussions with educators and the Bonner Community Food Bank revealed a steady, upward trend in demand for services from families in need.

“What we’re seeing in Bonner County is the underside of the turnaround from the recession,” said Pence, who co-founded Coldwater Creek in Sandpoint and helped create a corporate culture that funded numerous local causes during the company’s long tenure here. “There has been a positive impact on many, but we’re also seeing a large number of people who aren’t benefiting at all.”

Statistics on food bank visits and the need for energy assistance point to “a remarkable increase in the use of the safety net that is here,” Pence added.

But it was one statistic in particular that became a catalyst for the formation of FFOC. As he followed this thread of childhood hunger in Bonner County, Pence met with school administrators and teachers alike. Both camps told him that the problem was getting worse.

“The metrics bear out that something is going on,” said Pence, whose research showed that the number of children qualifying for the free and reduced school lunch program was on the rise. “The people who work with these children say it’s a severe problem. They believe their job as educators will be helped if children are well-nourished.”

One story put a disturbing face on the statistics for Pence. A teacher shared an encounter with a student who was having trouble concentrating and, after finding a moment to ask the child if everything was OK, was met with the response, “It’s not my day.” The educator started to tell the student that everyone has a bad day now and again when the child interrupted to clarify the statement.

The single mom who headed the family didn’t make enough money to feed her two children every day, the youngster said, so they took turns, getting fed on alternate days.

“That’s what was meant when they said, ‘It’s not my day,’” said Pence, who was galvanized by the words.

Fortunately, these children have access to free and reduced breakfast and lunch programs in the Lake Pend Oreille School District. There is also a “backpack” program — first launched by Coldwater Creek at Kootenai Elementary School and now administered by the food bank — that supplies kids with a limited amount of food to take home for the weekend.

Using community donations, Food For Our Children hopes to expand that weekend food program under a new name — Food2Go. If sufficient money can be raised through donations — no taxpayer dollars will be involved — Food2Go would serve all elementary schools in the district, as well as Sandpoint Middle School, Lake Pend Oreille High School and Sandpoint Head Start, beginning in the 2015-16 school year.

The current $4 per student investment would be increased to $6 per student, Pence explained, resulting in more nutritious meals made up of foodstuffs broken into single servings that require little or no preparation. This latter element is important, because many of the children affected are home alone on weekends and must prepare their own meals.

“Next year, we hope we can improve the quality and quantity of food that’s going out,” Pence said. “We can get this done, because we need to. The problem is not going to go away anytime soon.”

Based on current need, Food2Go would provide weekend food to about 565 students at eight public schools and Head Start for a total annual cost of approximately $176,000.

Food2Go is slated to begin as a pilot program this summer in at least one of the LPOSD schools now participating in the weekend distribution program. By the summer of 2016, FFOC hopes to pilot the program countywide and roll it out to all schools in both LPOSD and the West Bonner County School District.

The organization plans to complement, not compete with, existing assistance programs, Pence noted.

“Obviously, there are food stamps and, obviously, we have a food bank,” he said. “But it’s also obvious that, in the current situation, it’s not enough.”

As FFOC begins this first phase of fundraising, the group is looking for not only donors, but also individuals willing to work as community volunteers. Their roles would be to act as liaisons between FFOC and the local church community, as well as building alliances between the group and local business and social organizations.

At the onset, the volunteers also will be charged with the task of raising awareness about the issue of childhood hunger in Bonner County.

“I wasn’t that aware,” said FFOC board member Diana Dawson. “But, when you do a little research, all of this information lands at your doorstep.

“You have to start somewhere,” she continued. “And we think it starts with putting food in their tummies.”

Doubtless, there will be those who view FFOC as nothing more than a means to prop up they feel aren’t doing enough to help themselves. Hecker acknowledged that charitable programs such as Food2Go could be seen in that light.

“I’m a big believer in self-sufficiency,” he said. “But I can hardly go tell a 7- or 8-year-old boy or girl to ‘go get a job.’”

Pence, meanwhile, sees FFOC as an investment in the place he calls home.

“One of the reasons I’m doing it is that I’m proud of our community,” he said. “What better way to express that than to feed these children?

“We’re not trying to change the world, we’re just trying to make a difference,” he went on. “This is something we can change. We don’t need to have kids going to bed without food.”

Donation levels for Food For Our Children range from individual annual memberships of as little as $25, up to supporting memberships of $100 per year and a $250 per year sustaining membership. Small business memberships range from $100-$250 per year, with large businesses weighing in at $1,000 per year. A “President’s Circle” also has been created for larger donors.

For more information on Food For Our Children and to make donations, visit the group online at: www.foodforourchildren.org or call (208) 391-5277.