All Faiths Food Bank Expands School Pantry Program

March 13, 2024 – Sarasota

For too many area children, hunger isn’t something that happens elsewhere and to other people – it is a stark reality that is happening right here. Recent years have been particularly difficult for families already struggling to make ends meet; while All Faiths Food Bank has continued to work to meet the need, it has proven challenging to find and reach every community member who is food insecure. But there is one place where it is possible to find the majority of our community’s children throughout most of the year: schools.

In Sarasota County, nearly half of students qualify for free or reduced-cost meals and, in DeSoto County, 100% of students qualify.

All Faiths Food Bank (AFFB) is tirelessly working to end child hunger; one way the organization does this is to provide nutritional assistance through school pantries held at Sarasota and DeSoto County schools. Last year, there were 14 schools with pantries to provide nutritional assistance – including nine that remained open over the summer; in the current school year, to better fill the need for area families and students, the number of sites jumped to 20.

The School Pantry program, part of the food bank’s Children & Families initiative, helps set up food pantries that are conveniently located on-site at schools for the families of students in need. School administrators, food bank staff, and volunteers work together to manage ordering, delivery, and distribution of the food – including fresh fruits and vegetables, meats, and other available nutritious foods. These offerings complement school breakfast and lunch programs, providing access to food for children and their families after the school day has ended.

Last year, AFFB provided food for 8,603 individuals through school pantries, up from 7,000 the previous year.

“Children who experience hunger will be more likely to suffer from chronic health problems – sometimes lifelong, experience developmental impairments, struggle with attention and behavioral issues, and are at higher risk of poor school performance; thus, they are less likely to have opportunities for financial stability down the road,” said AFFB President & CEO Nelle S. Miller. “We can confidently say that when a new school pantry is opened, nutritious food is reaching families that were previously unserved. We are so grateful to the Food & Nutrition Services teams at Sarasota County and DeSoto County Schools, who are such wonderful partners in helping us to feed children in need.”

Sadly, even with the huge need due to Florida’s high cost of living and growing inflation, Florida opted out of the Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer for Children (Summer EBT) program, which would have provided $250 million in federal funding to help families in need buy food this summer. Thus, organizations like AFFB – along with its community partners – and generous philanthropists will continue to shoulder the burden to help our neighbors in need.

“Being raised by a single mom, I know what it was like not having enough food in the house at times,” said volunteer Wendy LaChaunce, who oversees the pantry at Emma E. Booker Elementary School. “At Booker, I make it my personal mission each food pantry to ask caretakers, ‘Do you have enough food in your house to feed your family?’ If not, we give them extra; if so, they will let me know they are okay. People are very honest about only taking what they need and leaving what they don’t for others.”

In addition to school pantries, AFFB also offers the BackPack Program at over 70 schools and child-focused programs – this effort provides “backpacks” full of nutritious food to help students through the weekend or when school is on break. Last year, more than 320,000 backpacks were distributed. Additionally, May 1st kicks off the 11th anniversary of the Campaign Against Summer Hunger, which reaches more than 40,000 students and siblings each year during the summer, when children lose access to meals at school.

For more about local efforts to fight child hunger, visit allfaithsfoodbank.org.