Help for kids who only get fed at school

How could I have not known? I was closer to the problem than ever before, but I just couldn’t see it. How could I have been so blind? I had heard the statistic that 24 percent of Washington’s children experience food insecurity. Yet, it took me nearly two years on what I thought were the front lines to finally get it. I learned what every school teacher likely already knows.

A year ago January I attended a kindergarten orientation event for the Marysville School District’s parents and young children. I was representing the Marysville Community Food Bank together with a board member. We were invited to help make known to new parents that the Food Bank is here in the community to help out those families that need some food assistance. It’s a place to come when the cupboards aren’t providing what is needed to get by.

It was at this event where I met several principals and staff members of the many elementary schools in town. It was here and it was from them that I learned the secret. There are kids that leave school at the end of the day that do not get food again until they come back to school the next day. That’s worth repeating. There are kids that leave school at the end of the day that do not get food again until they come back to school the next day. How can that be? Of course it’s possible. But how can it be? And bigger yet, how can we let that happen? What’s life like for these kids when they go home for the weekend?

This encounter was the impetus to start a program in town to do something about this horrific problem. By last May we had collected enough donations and gained volunteer support to run a trial program at Liberty Elementary. For seven weeks we provided 20 kids with a package of food to take home from school for the weekend so they could easily feed themselves. The results were wonderful. Students that had been misbehaving or simply not paying attention on Mondays were settled down and more focused. Kids that likely spent their time in class thinking about the pain in their empty tummies were able to listen and learn. We named the program Food For Thought.

The trial program was a hit and the summer was spent ramping up to serve more kids in more schools once the new school year started. We are now serving over 100 children in six Marysville schools. Tremendously caring volunteers are selecting, packaging and delivering the food weekly to the schools. Tremendously caring school staff are getting the food into the little hands that are in need.

There is much more work to be done. The needs are great. There are a lot more young lives out there to assist with getting a better start. A better start that could change a life for a lifetime.

Now, you too know the secret. Take action while the secret is fresh in your mind. Reach out to contribute to or help “backpack” programs. Inquire at your local food bank or school to learn if a program is in place near you. And let the secret be known. It is through knowledge and action that we will make progress toward feeding our hungry children.

Dell Deierling is the Director of the Marysville Community Food Bank.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Opinion

toon
Editorial cartoons for Thursday, March 28

A sketchy look at the news of the day.… Continue reading

Initiative promoter Tim Eyman takes a selfie photo before the start of a session of Thurston County Superior Court, Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021, in Olympia, Wash. Eyman, who ran initiative campaigns across Washington for decades, will no longer be allowed to have any financial control over political committees, under a ruling from Superior Court Judge James Dixon Wednesday that blasted Eyman for using donor's contributions to line his own pocket. Eyman was also told to pay more than $2.5 million in penalties. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Editorial: Initiative fee increase protects process, taxpayers

Bumped up to $156 from $5, the increase may discourage attempts to game the initiative process.

Protecting forests and prevent another landslide like Oso

Thank you for the powerful and heartbreaking article about the Oso landslide… Continue reading

Boeing’s downfall started when engineers demoted

Boeing used to be run by engineers who made money to build… Continue reading

Learn swimming safety to protect kids at beach, pool

Don’t forget to dive into water safety before hitting the pool or… Continue reading

Comment: Why shootings have decreased but gun deaths haven’t

High-capacity magazines and ‘Glock switches’ that allow automatic fire have increased lethality.

Washington state senators and representatives along with Governor Inslee and FTA Administrator Nuria Fernandez break ground at the Swift Orange Line on Tuesday, April 19, 2022 in Lynnwood, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Editorial: Community Transit making most of Link’s arrival

The Lynnwood light rail station will allow the transit agency to improve routes and frequency of buses.

An image of Everett Mayor Cassie Franklin is reflected in a storefront window during the State of the City Address on Thursday, March 21, 2024, at thee Everett Mall in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Editorial: State of city address makes case for Everett’s future

Mayor Franklin outlines challenges and responses as the city approaches significant decisions.

FILE - The massive mudslide that killed 43 people in the community of Oso, Wash., is viewed from the air on March 24, 2014. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)
Editorial: Mapping landslide risks honors those lost in Oso

Efforts continue in the state to map areas prone to landslides and prevent losses of life and property.

toon
Editorial cartoons for Wednesday, March 27

A sketchy look at the news of the day.… Continue reading

Burke: ‘Why not write about Biden, for once?’ Don’t mind if I do.

They asked; I’ll oblige. Let’s consider what the president has accomplished since the 2020 election.

Comment: Catherine missed chance to dispel shame of cancer

She wasn’t obligated to do so, but she might have used her diagnosis to educate a sympathetic public.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.