On Tuesday, February 19, the ladies of Scott County Farm Bureau Women’s Leadership Committee made food donations to the Backpack programs at Mansfield Middle School and Waldron High School.
Backpack programs provide food to students who are dealing with food insecurity in the home. The backpacks are filled with easy to fix foods, such as microwaveable meals, healthy snacks, and cereals, and sent home with students on Friday afternoons so they will have food available to them through the weekend.
According to FeedingAmerica.org, in 2018 the food insecurity rate among children in Scott County was 25.6%, which accounts for approximately 660 children. One is too many. By donating to the programs at our local schools we can all help to alleviate this problem.
Here is how you can help. Contact your local school counselors to verify their donation procedures and to see if they have any specific need for the week. An elementary student’s needs will be different from a high school student’s. Listed below are items they can always use. Make sure anything you purchase won’t expire quickly and is packaged so they can break it open and distribute smaller packaged items individually. For example boxes of honey buns, donut sticks, fruit snacks, peanut butter crackers, etc.Here is how you can help.
Frequently needed items- Individual microwaveable meals such as Mac and cheese, Beefaroni, Spaghetti, etc. Fruit snacks, Vienna sausages, Granola Bars, Cheese crackers, peanut butter crackers, individual sized cereal (boxed), and raisins or fruit cups. Make sure you make nutritious purchases. NO chips or candy. Since the food has to be stored at the schools, and for obvious safety issues, they can NOT accept fresh fruit or veggies.
Pictured with Mansfield Middle School Counselor Rhonda Bullard are committee members Linda Parish and Cheryl Phipps.
Pictured with Waldron High School Counselors Tasha Self and Melissa Brewer is Waldron District Superintendent Daniel Fielding and committee members Sue Cox, Regina Oliver, and Laurie Richardson.