Food Pantries Offered at Schools for First Time

Dec08

A long line of families forms outside a portable school classroom at Dobie Middle school. One by one, each person goes in and is handed a bag full of non-perishable food and fresh produce to take back home.

For the first time, these families are able to visit a food pantry within a school thanks to the Food Bank’s new partnership with Austin Voices for Education and Youth, a non-profit that connects parents, schools and the community to support children and improve schools.

The partnership began in early October and food pantries are now offered at three of six Austin schools where Austin Voices is located.  Currently, Webb Middle School, Burnet Middle School and Dobie Middle School have food pantries stocked with staples and nutritious food. LBJ High School will soon be able to host a food panty onsite as well.

“At Austin Voices, we do everything from Blue Santa to case management,” Jose Carrasco, Austin Voices Dobie Middle School Resource Center director, said. “Whatever comes in through that door we have to either have it or know somebody we can call, that is why it is good to have partners like the Central Texas Food Bank.”

With one in four children in Central Texas at risk of hunger, having a food pantry at a school makes it easier for families to obtain nutritious food to help them get through the month.

For Alejandra, who takes care of her 4-year old who has a disability and is unable to speak, finding a job to work with her schedule is difficult. Times get tough for her family when her husband’s work as a painter is affected by the weather.

After learning about the food pantry during her ESL classes, Alejandra stops by the portable school classroom after dropping off her two children at school.

“We’re using this help very much, because just imagine, if I don’t look for other means to take something home, it’s not enough with his income,” Alejandra said.

She isn’t the only one who relies on the food pantry’s services. Since the partnership began on October 11, all three schools have distributed a total of 10,601 pounds of food with Dobie Middle School having the largest increase in households served - growing from 62 to 102.

With the holidays approaching, families are grateful for the extra help. Martha’s family usually has to limit the food they buy at the grocery store and will sometimes have to leave food behind to stay within budget.

 At the pantry, Martha now gets food that she would not have been able to buy at the store.

“It’s a very big help, because it’s a lot of stuff that we normally use in our house and sometimes we don’t have enough for all of it,” Martha said.

As she makes her way into the food pantry, she’s given a bag filled with rice, tortillas, beans, bread, potatoes, canned food, eggs and fresh produce.

She’s a little worried about the holidays, but with the extra help, she hopes to now be able to provide a turkey.