March 14, 2017
You might not think of hunger as an education issue at first. But for children, it absolutely is.
“Hunger impacts a kid’s ability to learn in many ways, but mostly, kids that come to school hungry get distracted,” explains Marlene Lunt, Adjustment Counselor for Collins Middle School in Salem. “They don’t have the energy to participate. It makes it really difficult for them to learn overall.”
"When I’m hungry in class, I usually just get really sleepy and just want to fall asleep on my desk,” shares one such Collins student.
“There are 560 scholars that walk these halls daily,” says Principal Glenn Burns. “Before you can focus on just strictly academics, you have to make sure everybody’s basic needs are met, and that starts with food.”
Due to poverty levels in Salem, all students receive free breakfast and lunch at school. But there are 68 hours between lunch on Friday and breakfast on Monday, during which many students go hungry.
Backpack68 started two years ago on the North Shore as an answer to this persistent problem. “The school contacted us and said, ‘We have 20 kids who are going home on the weekend without any food at all to eat,’” recalls Salvation Army Corps Officer Captain Dennis Knight. “And so, we quickly asked what we could do. We put together a lunch and some breakfasts for them to take home on Friday evenings.”
The program currently provides food for 60 households in Salem each weekend.
Adjustment Counselor June Casale highlights a pair of siblings at the school (a brother and sister) who participate in the program — a sixth grader and an eighth grader. “The brother shared during a family therapy session how important this program has been for them, because he has been constantly worried about food,” Casale says. “The backpack program has alleviated this one area of stress for the family.”
And how do the siblings feel about the program? Enthusiastic, to say the least.
“I’m bringing food to my sisters, my mother, and two more families,” remarks one sibling with excitement. “It feels great to bring home food!” “I hope that the Backpack68 program continues,” remarks the other. “I’ve been getting food in the program since the middle of last year. All of my family eats the food that I bring home. It's a really good feeling.”
Backpack68 is just one of many innovative ways that The Salvation Army meets the needs of less fortunate children every day of the year!