"If you could do one thing that would improve a child’s self-esteem, help facilitate better behavior, and increase his or her learning potential, wouldn’t you do it? It is easy. Just make sure that the child is not hungry. One in five children are food insecure, meaning they don’t know where their next meal is coming from.
Merrell Footwear and Mast General Store are teaming up with the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina to provide Food for Kids. For each pair of Merrell footwear purchased from October 14 until 31 at the Mast Store in Winston-Salem, Merrell will donate funds to fill a backpack with food for the weekend.
The Second Harvest’s Backpack Program is a collaboration with public schools in the food bank’s 18-county service area. Teachers watch for signs that a student may be food insecure – signs like hoarding food in the cafeteria, taking food from other children’s trays, or even scavenging food from trash cans to eat later or over the weekend. Once identified, these students are given backpacks filled with easily-prepared food for the weekend, enough to feed themselves and any siblings that may be at home. Backpacks are returned on Monday morning to be refilled.
Teachers report better participation, self-esteem, and behavior as a result of the Food for Kids backpack program.
“Merrell believes in the importance of giving a child a good foundation to grow, learn, and just be a kid,” said Fred Martin, president of Mast General Store. “We are proud to have vendor partners that take an interest in helping us address some of the human needs in our communities.”
While hunger is a complicated social issue, it’s not hard or expensive to help. Literally, any donation amount can make a difference. At the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina, they can turn $1 into seven meals. In addition to Merrell’s contribution, the Mast Store will be accepting contributions in change jars to help the Food for Kids program even more.
For more information about how you can help fight hunger in your community, visit www.hungernwnc.org."
- A Press Release
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