No Kid Hungry

We've made a commitment to end childhood hunger in America by 2015, and lots of people are helping us in lots of different ways. Subscribe to our news feed to keep up with the action. Here's an example of how we're helping kids get the food they need over the weekends and on holidays when school isn’t in session.

Katie and her Backpack Full of Food

With seven brothers and one sister, 8-year-old Katie doesn't always get enough to eat at home. "We haven't been going to the grocery store lately because my mama and papa haven't been getting paid," says Katie, without fully knowing the impact of her words.

Katie and her siblings are being raised by their mother and grandfather. And she's just one of the many children in the Houston area who don't have regular access to the food they need to stay full and focused at school. That's why Katie's school implemented Houston Food Bank's Backpack Buddy Club program.

This is just one of many backpack programs Share Our Strength supports around the country, helping kids who rely on school meals during the week get the food they need when school's not in session.

This program identifies chronically hungry children and provides them with a sack full of nutritious, kid-friendly food each Friday to last through the weekend. Since Katie and a majority of her classmates come from low income families, 97% of students participate in the free or reduced-price school meal program. The Backpack Buddy Club serves as a lifeline for many kids and their families.

Communities in Schools Project Manager Christine Bell helps operate a local Backpack Buddy Club and says the food the kids receive has made a huge difference in their behavior and concentration in class. "Teachers are seeing kids more alert in class, and they're doing better [academically]," she says. "They're good kids and they really need this program. They feel at ease knowing there's an outlet for them to get what they need - what they don't have at home. And with that need being met, they have more time to worry about their education and not where their next meal is coming from."

It is support from organizations like Share our Strength to Houston Food Bank that makes it possible for students at 98 schools here in southeast Texas to come to school on Monday mornings full and focused - and they're grateful for your compassion.