During the school year, Good Samaritan Ministries’ Food for Thought program provides food to chronically hungry students over the long weekends when food may not be readily available.
In addition to showing physical signs of malnourishment, a child who is hungry cannot focus on schoolwork. Hunger even negatively affects a child’s ability to interact socially.
The Food for Thought has partnered with local school campuses for about five years now.
Since the start of the program, the long summer months have always been a concern. If a child is hungry on weekends during the school year, when at least two meals are provided at school during the week, they will certainly be hungry on weekends during summer where those weekday meals may be uncertain.
For the past two years, Good Samaritan Ministries has partnered with Love Brownwood, a missions group from Coggin Avenue Baptist Church, to deliver the bags of food to the homes of the students on the weekends during the summer months.
“We love the fact that we can continue to meet a vital need during the summer months when school is not in session,” said Angelia Bostick. “However, it does cost almost double to provide the food in the summer as in the school year since much of the food we use is not available from the Food Bank.”
During the school year, it costs approximately $4.50 to provide one bag to one student for one weekend. During the summer, the bags cost around $8 per student per weekend.
“Food drives are always a great way to help, but, really, for the summer food, what we really need are monetary donations,” Bostick said. “With the food costing even more than usual and the fact that we had to have it ordered before the program started, we badly need to cover those costs.”
Bostick said they would not be able to provide food on the weekends during the summer without the generous donations from local good Samaritans who support this mission and meet a need for our community’s most vulnerable residents.
To make a donation for the Food for Thought Summer Program, you may mail a check to P.O. Box 1136, Brownwood, TX 76804, drop it by 305 Clark Street or make a payment online at goodsambwd.org.
For more information, please call 325-643-2273 or 325-203-2489.