I chose to volunteer at the Food Care and Coalition center in Provo for my Community Experience, and boy was it an eye opener. I always toss in a few cans and packages of stuff from the back of the cupboard when the boy scouts come around for a food drive, but I never gave much thought to where it went after that point. I rather assumed that it all went to a bishops storehouse kind of operation where people came and picked up what they needed. Now, some of this food is used this way, but there are obviously many other needs that I was not aware of.
While I volunteered, I was asked to help put together boxes of "backpacks."During the week, public school students who don't get enough food at home can get free or reduced school lunch and breakfast. However, these kids still have to make it through the weekends when their parents can't bring in enough to feed them. To make up for this, the food bank sends each school a certain number of boxes packed with "backpacks" which are ziplock bags with enough food for a small meal. Every preschool, elementary, middle, junior, and high school is sent the exact amount of food needed to send home with their students.
It was amazing to see how many people are helped by the food bank. It was also heartbreaking. Imagine being a parent whose child is hungry, and have nothing to give them. Imagine being a child who knows that the only food they may get is what they bring home in their backpack. My family is not wealthy, but we have always had food on the table. The food in the lunches isn't a lot, just a couple of granola bars, a fruit cup, and maybe a serving of macaroni and cheese- hardly a big or balanced meal. I will be a lot more aware next time somebody announces a food drive-because I may be a poor college student, but I eat a lot better than any of the children receiving the lunches I packed.
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