DOTHAN, Ala. – Over 20 million children in the U.S. are eligible for free or reduced lunch.
Many of those children have been displaced by the pandemic.
Getting a grab and go lunch from school-sponsored nutrition program isn’t an option for all especially not for students in rural areas.
“Transportation is a big issue for a lot especially when you live 15 minutes to an hour away from where you go to school,” says Pepsi Co Foundation Food for Good senior manager Doug Hargis.
To address those student’s needs, Pepsi Co, the USDA, and Baylor Collaborative on Hunger and Poverty have partnered up to get meals to the doorsteps of students in need.
We’ll pack up ten shelf-stable breakfasts and ten shelf-stable lunches in a box and ship that directly to the child’s home,” says Hargis.
Over 550,000 meals have been delivered to the front porch of children and families across 120 Alabama communities including Houston, Henry, Dale and Pike County.
As coronavirus cases and unemployment numbers go up, the need for the program does too, so getting nutritious meals to students who need it most isn’t just a goal. It’s a work of passion.
Many of the folks that we employ, myself included, as a matter of fact, were participants in these programs as children and so we have a truly vested interest and our heart is in this mission,” says Hargis.
The Meal to You program has expanded to all 50 states and Puerto Rico.
Parents that want to know if their child or community qualifies should contact their school district who will then contact the USDA.
