Have you ever wondered about the children who get their best meals in the school cafeteria? What happens when they’re not in school?
BUDDY Boxes
Many children who qualify for free lunch or reduced fee lunch at their schools have little to eat at home and return to school after weekends distracted by their hunger and unable to focus on learning.
Family Mentor Foundation’s goal is to bridge the gap; to send these kids home with a Buddy Box every Friday during the school year to alleviate their hunger. A Buddy Box is a box filled with kid-friendly, nutritious, nonperishable, individual sized-food items that are easy for children to eat or prepare on their own. These meals and snacks help sustain the children on the weekends when they are not in school.
Currently, we provide Buddy Boxes for 1,500 hungry children at schools in Worthington, Columbus and South-Western City School Districts during the academic year, and at multiple summer feeding sites throughout the summer.
“ “We are so thankful for this program. Our students are so grateful and ask about the buddy boxes at the beginning of the year. It is clear that they are appreciated by the families and are helping meet needs over the weekends. Thank you so much for this great program for our students.” ”
Our school site coordinators report the following:
❖ 90% say that this program helps reduce students’ weekend hunger.
❖ 84% report that this program reduced students’ anxiety about the weekend.
❖ 90% feel that this program helps students feel like there is someone outside of school who cares about them.
Packing Events
We host regular packing events where volunteers gather together to prepare and fill Buddy Boxes. These events bring together members of the community or company employees to donate, fill and organize Buddy Boxes for a particular month. This fun and interactive experience allows participants to give back in a hands-on meaningful community-building activity.
