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1 in 5 children face hunger. Let that sink in for a second. These are the kids down the road. The ones sitting on the bus and in class right next to your child, trying to learn the same things, but hunger is a dark cloud. A constant distraction and burden holding them back from reaching their full potential. Hunger hurts, but Buddy Packs help. They provide consistent, kid-friendly nutrition to the kids who need it most. Distributed through more than 150 schools across central and northeast Missouri and serving an average of 7,500 children every week, Buddy Packs make a big impact.
Buddy Packs consist of two ready-to-eat entrees, a fruit cup, cereal with shelf-stable milk and a nutritional bar – and peanut butter is distributed monthly. Buddy Packs help fill the gap for kids who receive free and reduced meals during the school week. They are distributed every Friday, providing necessary nutrition over the weekend, so children are prepared on Monday morning for the week ahead.
The Buddy Pack program is the most expensive program for The Food Bank to operate. It is also one of the most vital. Would you like to help provide children with Buddy Packs? It costs us $180 to provide one student with a Buddy Pack every weekend for an entire school year. Click here to donate. If you want to volunteer to help assemble Buddy Packs, please click here.
