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Children that show up to school healthy and well-nourished learn better. They are more likely to attend school and take advantage of educational opportunities. Undernourished children are at a disadvantage from the moment they walk into school. Poor nutrition increases fatigue, shortens attention span, and decreases work capacity. Food insecure children tend to be absent more often because of illnesses. Fueling Kids’ Futures addresses the problem of hunger for food insecure school-age children.

At any given time over 18 million children cannot access food consistently and must reduce food intake, eat poor diets, and often go without any food. While it seems unlikely that children in Michigan would go to bed hungry on weekends, in reality, between 5% and 90% of the children in school districts are at risk.

The Fueling Kids’ Futures program helps those families meet their   nutritional needs on weekends when the students do not have access to the meals they receive at school.

A bag filled with food for six meals is sent home each Friday, with a qualifying student. Each bag contains several pounds of food such as tuna, chicken, peanut butter, macaroni and cheese, fruit juices, pasta, oatmeal, fruit bars, and soup. The food is provided through special arrangements with the Kroger grocery chain.

For as little as $4.33 we are able fill a backpack for a child to take home on Friday. A donation of $160 will provide food for a child for the entire school year.

With the help of groups of concerned community leaders, philanthropic and business partners, caring citizens and you, Fueling Kids’ Futures One Meal at a Time can be a driving force against hunger-insecurity. See how you can make a difference in the lives of so many of our neighborhood children.