Meet my son, Paul.
He’s five years old.
And we’re really proud of him.
I’m a little tired of referring to him as “Buddy Boy” or just the impersonal “my son,” and besides that, there’s no getting around seeing his name in this post anyway.
The kid deserves some recognition, if I’m allowed to be a proud mommy today.
Paul forfeited gifts at his fifth birthday party (the kids’ version) in favor of food for Kids Food Basket, a local organization that provides sack suppers for school kids who might otherwise go home hungry. Besides that, he willingly (more or less) left his friends playing outside to volunteer to make sandwiches for an entire school.
It was the best part of my year so far.
Paul Volunteers at Kids Food Basket
Excited to be on our way with just Mommy and Daddy. Little sister Leah was too young to come along.
We donated one really BIG bag of non-perishables and sandwich baggies.
We washed our hands to get ready to work.
Our assignment was to make 85 peanut butter sandwiches, which would feed one entire school’s worth of kids in the program.
Just peanut butter on bread; no jelly. It was hard to figure out how thick to make them. At home I would make really thick, delicious sandwiches, but here I felt like I needed to stretch the peanut butter more. ???
We made sandwich after sandwich, hitting our mark of 85 and going beyond on our way to helping feed this many kids:
Paul was so highly motivated. He loved spreading the peanut butter on bread, especially since he got to wear gloves so his hands didn’t get sticky. We talked about the fact that some other 5-year-olds would probably eat the sandwich he made, and we prayed for those we were serving from time to time (my “kitchen prayer” in action).
After a while, he asked if he could help fill the bags, and the concentration on his face as he got to the end of the line and trucked back to the beginning was truly priceless. He could barely reach into the boxes.
The Contents of the Lunch
How to Feed the World Real Food with Less Waste
I don’t know the answer.
I hate that.
At one point while spreading peanut butter on the outside of a heel of bread, I said, “This is almost unethical for me,” referring to making white bread sandwiches with hydrogenated fat peanut butter. *hair stands on end* It was hard to think about feeding kids food I knew was bad for them.
The alternative, though, is letting kids dig through the dumpster for food after school, which is what one principal found her students doing that inspired the creation of Kids Food Basket in the first place.
Sometimes you have to take what you can get.
Real foodies have a hard time finding items to purchase for non-perishable food donations. See this post for some ideas. I had so many conflicts of interest while trying to navigate the choices, especially knowing that kids and only kids were going to eat the food.
My guilt was high as I chose some cheese and crackers packages, and I couldn’t bring myself to even consider the applesauce with high fructose corn syrup at the dollar store. I looked at 100% juice boxes and noticed some cartons of milk nearby. I knew, since they were being sold on a shelf, that they were ultra-high-temperature pasteurized. What was the lesser of the two evils? UHT non-organic milk or 100% juice? I decided to go with the milk for the protein aspect, vs. the relative lack of nutritional value (in my book) of fruit juice, especially apple juice.
I also started to think about the waste of single serving packages, and especially of the plastic spoons I was asked to purchase, knowing that most of the children would be eating the meal at home. I understand packing the “whole meal” though. What if there’s not a clean spoon in the home? It’s important that these kids are given dignity along with dinner, and they don’t need any reminders that the food and financial situation in their house is so dismal.
Is the Purpose “Full” or “Nourished”?
The question of hungry people being “full” vs. being “nourished” is a tangled one, and there’s no easy answer. As much as I wish I could have been making roasted organic chicken and raw cheese sandwiches on soaked whole wheat bread with homemade mayo…that’s just not going to happen. The donations that come in, from private individuals and other organizations like Gleaners or America’s Second Harvest, simply must be used, and when white bread is all you have, you just feed the children.
I was told that this year, they’re serving a lot more fruits and vegetables, which I was really excited to hear.
On the flip side, even that isn’t probably as positive as it sounds. I kept wondering how many of the little baggies of cherry tomatoes in that day’s meals found their final resting place in the trash can, along with the cucumbers from the day before. How many kids will eat a random bag of vegetables, with no dip, especially when it’s likely their parents aren’t going to make them?
Speaking of those plastic baggies, I also couldn’t help thinking, “My Plastic-Free Life would have a heart attack if she could see this.”
We used lots and lots of plastic bags, but what is the alternative? A charitable organization can’t spend the extra money on waxed paper bags, and that would still create a mountain of waste, and you can’t give the kids reusables because you’d never get them back, and how would you keep them straight if you could?
The joy I felt in volunteering was tempered by all these not-nutritious and not-eco-friendly considerations.
A Well-Oiled Machine
The feat of serving over 2500 kids a sack supper every weekday is an incredible one, especially for a grassroots non-profit organization like Kids Food Basket that was only serving four schools and a few hundred kids six years ago when I got involved with them. Their facility is a small one, with lunchbag food tucked into every corner.
On our tour, I was happy to see 
and not surprised to see 
. There was also real cheese. 
Again, you just have to take what you can get.
Paul was thrilled to get to sign his name
on the cooler wall: 
The director also shared with us some thank you letters from some of the kids they serve:
This reminded me that the school teachers can make a big impact on their students’ nutrition, and I bet they’re reminding the kids to eat their vegetables. “Delicious vegetables!” Doesn’t that just warm your heart!?
Get Involved
If you’re in the Grand Rapids area, here’s how you can get involved with Kids Food Basket:
I’m proud that 85 kids had a sack dinner because of our volunteer efforts, and I pray that the tomatoes and bananas got as much face time as the PB sandwiches and granola bars. I’m really, really proud of my son Paul, who had a fabulous experience his first time volunteering, and wore his new T-shirt for the next two days.
Donations to food banks are notoriously low this time of year (summer), so I want to encourage you to find one in your community and think of the hungry with a gift of some sort this month. What will you bring? Is it possible to feed hungry people nourishing foods, or at least something closer to real food than the cheapest peanut butter on white bread?
What do you think? How do we change the paradigm of cheap food for the hungry?
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Kitchen Stewardship is dedicated to balancing God’s gifts of time, health, earth and money. If you feel called to such a mission, read more at Mission, Method, and Mary and Martha Moments.
This post is part of
I think that you feed people what you can while making small changes. But we have to ask the fundamental question “why are these people hungry?” Which will probably get us back to making changes at home.
But obviously too many children have an unstable home situation. So the temptation is to try to do something on a broad, global level. But that turns everything into an industrialized process where we end up with plastic and fake foods.
So the answer has to be local, obviously. And it has to start with those who know how to truly nourish people. I would think that you could make a bean and vegetable soup dinner for the same price as the sandwiches + packaging.
But like you, I don’t have all of the answers.
[Reply to this comment]
Katie Reply:
June 5th, 2010 at 9:47 am
Shannon,
Agreed, bean soup would be a great option for a soup kitchen, but these kids have to be able to take the sack suppers home every day. It is a local organization, but even a local place has to serve lots of kids to fill the need. It’s a tough one!
Katie
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This is a great post, Katie. Soooo proud of adorable Mr. Paul. Kids volunteering to help other kids warms my heart.
And I totally get your conflict over feeding the masses versus feeding them well. I wish we had better answers.
.-= Em.´s last blog ..Where in the world …? =-.
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You have one amazing son there! What a blessing to hear how he wants to help others!
Have a great weekend!
Sherry
.-= Sherry´s last blog ..New Family Member =-.
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Our church does something called the Vegetable Basket during the gardening season. Everyone donates their garden surplus and it is distributed to food banks.
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Joann Reply:
June 4th, 2010 at 2:22 pm
My father’s parish in PA does the same thing! It’s certainly a wonderful start.
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Wow. I have no words.
I, too, would be terribly conflicted at feeding these things & the waste, but hungry tummies need something.
A lady at church recently asked me about eating gluten-free as she has a friend who’s daughter was recently diagnosed with Celiac Disease. We talked about it for a while.
Then she said, “Isn’t it a pain to have to try to eat that way? Surely there is something to be done about this.”
My honest response was, “I’m afraid i think it is a pain that we consider these things (white bread, processed foods with gluten & other nasties, pasteurized milk, etc.) to be ‘normal eating.’ None of the things people think to be ‘normal’ are natural or healthy anymore. They are simply convenient.”
She agreed & dropped the conversation. (She had said to me another time when i mentioned all the preservatives & nasty stuff in some of the food, “We all have to die sometime. Might as well die happy.”)
.-= Kathryn´s last blog ..Now, what a surprise =-.
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Kathryn Reply:
June 4th, 2010 at 3:57 pm
I meant to say, too, happy BD to your wonderful boy. This desire of his to help others is something really special & he is a child to be proud of.
.-= Kathryn´s last blog ..Now, what a surprise =-.
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How sweet of him….so cute…love the pics….Birthday Wishes to him….may all his dreams cum true
.-= Priti´s last blog ..Tehri ~ Vegetable Biryani =-.
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“The alternative, though, is letting kids dig through the dumpster for food after school, which is what one principal found her students doing that inspired the creation of Kids Food Basket in the first place.”
IS that the alternative? What about community dinners, maybe in conjunction with community gardens? Don’t the parents need to eat too? How about cooking classes? It seems like a better solution could be found. With as many soup kitchens and food pantries as we have in Grand Rapids, it seems like there would be a way to get healthier food to those who need it.
.-= Wendy´s last blog ..Women Food and God: A Book Review & Giveaway =-.
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I hate it when people say that about “dying happy”. How happy can you possibly be when you’re 300 pounds and all your joints ache constantly? Ugh!
This is a great post. I know I always am torn when it comes to food banks. I’d love to stock them with Lara bars and brown rice pasta, but if I did that, then I would be the one needing the food bank.
.-= Christy´s last blog ..Sometimes you just have to let go =-.
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This post brought a tear to my eye. What a wonderful thing your son did on his birthday. I know that KFB is working really hard to find local farmers to partner with to get more healthy foods in these kid’s hands. It is a really sad truth that the poor among us are not only eating the least, they are eating the worst. I wish there was an easy answer, but like you said, I am not sure there is one.
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Katie Reply:
June 5th, 2010 at 9:59 am
Jill,
Katie
I knew you’d read this post – thank you for sharing that you were touched.
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I’ve also felt conflicted about this. For me, I just decided that any food is better than no food. The hardest part for me is the prioritizing — like you standing there choosing between 100% apple juice or UHT milk. Neither choice is ideal, or even good, but they’re BOTH better than ignoring hunger altogether.
Thanks for sharing this in today’s Fight Back Friday carnival!
~KristenM
(AKA FoodRenegade)
.-= FoodRenegade´s last blog ..Fight Back Friday June 4th =-.
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This was a great post. So many thoughful comments on this issue. I wish I had the answers. Happy Birthday to your wonderful son.
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When there was a food drive at my son’s preschool, they had examples of some of the things they needed most like peanut butter and canned meat, maybe pork and beans… all generic and cheapo brands with HO/PHO and HFCS, etc. I think I cleaned out a few last items from my pantry that I knew I wouldn’t eat anymore, but I had to balance it out with some additional nourishing alternatives. I bought some organic peanut butter from Costco, which is what my family eats, and also gave them some canned chicken, which I consider pretty decent – as opposed to the vienna sausage or some other very processed canned meat they were suggesting. I used to always give from my couponing surplus, so the donations only cost me pennies. But now that I don’t coupon really anymore, I buy the things I would eat, but less than I could give if I had gotten it my couponing. It is a dilema and I would feel as torn about it as you… situations like this also motivate me to have less paper and plastic waste in my home tp help compensate for times like this when there’s really no way around it.
Tell Paul we are proud of his sacrafice and his service!
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Wow, I understand your concerns. But, some childs life was forever changed because your son was willing to make some sacrifices. I think that the concerns you had are pretty insignificant compared to this. I believe that God can take a peanut butter sandwich on white bread wrapped in plastic and use it to bless in more ways than we might give Him credit for. What a wonderful thing to teach your young son!!
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It was fun meeting Paul & Leah and seeing you again today, Katie!
I feel the exact same way when we’re at God’s Kitchen making lunches for Meals on Wheels and filling the bags with MARGARINE (AHHHHH!), white bread, HFCS pudding cups, and other junk. It sure feels wrong, but as you said, what is the alternative? I think all we can do is keep spreading the word about real food and small changes will happen. Either that or get a DeVos or VanAndel to take on this cause…
.-= Kelly the Kitchen Kop´s last blog ..May Round Up: Top 5 Thank You Links & Top 5 Posts =-.
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I feel very wrong about feeding junk to the hungry that would not let my own family touch it with a ten foot pole! The whole do to others what you would want done to you comes into play over and over again in mind! When it comes to giving for food drives, I rather give a smaller quantiy that is good quality then a lot that is not good quality.
There are so many hungery people in this world. Our family would rather make a meal and take to those we know needed it or drop off anyomously a bag of good quality groceries to those who need a helping hand. We just need to get creative!
But KUDOS to your son and especially to you and your husband. Anytime as parents, we can encourage our children to give, we are building a better tomorrow!
.-= Amy´s last blog ..Our Vacation Adventures, Part 10 =-.
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thanks so much for this post. i’m going to sit down with my soon-to-be six year old tomorrow and read it with her. i wonder what she’ll want to do for her birthday afterwards.
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Luckily when my daughter turned 8 this year and we decided to do something with her gifts instead of keeping them, we didn’t have to deal with the ‘good vs bad’ food debate. Instead we asked her friends to bring arts and crafts items and donated them to the children’s oncology department at the local hospital. The overall message we teach our children goes beyond the good vs bad food debate. We all know what we would like our children and the childen of others to eat…but getting them fed anything is the first step! Congratulations to you, your son, and your family for doing such a worthy birthday activity!!
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Your son has a heart of gold (reflecting his mom’s, who models sacrifice and service well).
I love this story and how you wove your own observations in with his joy of contributing.
Thank you for inspiring us and making us think about some of the deeper issues along with the surface aid we offer!
.-= Ann Kroeker´s last blog ..Food on Fridays: Humble & Regular =-.
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Katie Reply:
June 7th, 2010 at 2:34 am
Aw, Ann, you flatter me!
Katie
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2 of your headings stick out to me:
How to Feed the World Real Food with Less Waste
&
Is the Purpose “Full” or “Nourished”?
I think the purpose is not full, but rather something. Put SOMETHING in the tummies of the hungry & starving & try to make it as nutritious as possible. Is conventionally produced food really *that* bad? No. Now, overprocessed, true junk foods, yes. Let’s stay away from the ramen noodles & cup o soups & so forth. But that grocery store beef, milk, pb, white bread, etc…? Would you really rather someone go hungry than eat those foods? This also brings about the point that, if we can’t feed everyone now, how do we feed everyone on a total slow food model where production efficiency is drastically decreased?
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Katie Reply:
June 7th, 2010 at 2:36 am
Tonya,
I would absolutely not rather have people go hungry, hence the dilemma. And – we can feed everyone now, we just aren’t moving the food around efficiently enough. So much goes to waste in our country (and to waist) that we could feed everyone easily if the food was in the right places at the right times.
Is white bread very different from Ramen noodles?
Katie
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Debi Reply:
September 19th, 2011 at 11:23 am
Yes, Ramen noodles have Hydrogenated Oils in the noodles, and MSG in the spice packet. The hydrogenated fat is alot and provides the calories and full feeling these noodles provide, but no nutrition. SO, white bread with PB for the same amount of calories is MUCH better. Also, the white bread has some of the B vitamins “enriched” back in.
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lizi Reply:
September 16th, 2011 at 4:24 pm
most of the problems with “feeding the world” have to do with distribution NOT lack of food. there is a tremendous amount of food wasted, much of it before it even gets to our homes. and how about the over 30% of corn that is surplused EVERY YEAR, goes to waste. the stuff our gov’t subsidizes farmers to grow to feed our sick cows, pigs, chickens. that land could be growing vegetables, fruits, or grains fit for human consumption. and then factor in the so-called green revolution of bio-tech, where small farmers in third world countries are pressured to buy GM seeds with expensive machinery, instead of improving growing traditional crops and foods on a local scale. i think there is a a misconception that slow food is inefficient. maybe according to the “bottom line” ($$) it is. but there are other factors where it excels.
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Don’t you see what a luxury it is to be concerned with WHAT you are eating as opposed to IF you eat? There must be something wrong with me . . . I don’t seem to get the confliction.
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Katie Reply:
June 7th, 2010 at 2:43 am
Penni,
Yes, we are truly blessed to *not* be worrying about if we’ll have enough food for the day. I’m an optimist, I guess…I wish we could live in the ideal world where everyone is fed so well that they are well, truly healthy, without the sugar highs, obesity and behavior issues that come with the standard American diet. I want people to be fed…but I WISH they could be fed WELL.
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with you; in fact, you make an excellent point. Eyebrow raising for me. Thank you – Katie
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Thanks for introducing us to your kids! It was really exciting to me to see their names.
I have trouble with this too…both with donating food and inviting a lot of people over. Or, realistically, taking food to new mothers, because ALL of my friends are having babies. Some seasons as many as one every couple of weeks. I can’t decide if I should try to stretch my budget and serve them all the best, or give them whatever I can. I mean, it’s a total dichotomy. It’s hard to feed the world on real food, as things stand now (due to availability/cost), but how can you give them lesser quality? If you have the control I think you should probably give them MORE quality.
Is there any way you could encourage, say, real cheese cubes instead of processed slices? More fruits and veggies? Whole grain bread? Grape or orange juice instead of apple? Rice and bean dishes or other hot meals? Perhaps if you agreed to chair the donations and prep you could! But, do you have the time? It’s soooooo hard to know what to do….
Maybe you can at least help educate. Send literature to the parents encouraging fresh fruits and veggies, or whole grain bread. Put up more signs about eating those things. Share the kids’ thank you letters that say how much they enjoy those foods. Make a big deal about it to them. I don’t know. Something!!
.-= Kate´s last blog ..Creating a Meal Plan: Seasonal Meals =-.
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tonya Reply:
June 4th, 2010 at 6:27 pm
Taking a line from your comment “It’s hard to feed the world on real food, as things stand now (due to availability/cost)”
does anyone know what % of the US or world population eats real food now? If this # were to grow & ag were to shift to accomodate a total or near total slow food production model, do you think it would be possible to feed people/the world to the extent we are now or better? Research says no.
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lizi Reply:
September 16th, 2011 at 4:33 pm
research says no? research from Monsanto or Cargill? they would certainly like everyone to be afraid to change the current model of industrialized food production. i have a bachelor’s degree in agricultural science and this was something i studied intensely and i strongly disagree. problems we have feeding the hungry are a problem of distribution, not production. and then when you consider all the land that grows corn and soybeans, and the gross amount of that that literally goes to waste (and our gov’t subsidizes this reckless overproduction!); not to mention other energy inputs for CAFO meat. if people understood how much the gov’t subsidizes this industry, on every single level, and that without that $ our meat would cost literally 5 times as much, maybe people would change there tune.
i know it is hard choices to make. i am able to afford organic food because a fair amount i buy at the grocery store comes from large CA farms. but regardless the current system is NOT sustainable it WILL break down and we might as well prepare for that and ease out of it instead of blindly ambling along waiting for a catastrophe.
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lizi Reply:
September 16th, 2011 at 4:37 pm
if everything at the grocery store had it’s TRUE price, the $$ from gov’t subsidies, add in the devastating environmental costs from every level of production, the expense for deteriorating the fabric of society- the TRUE PRICE of organic, local food would be WAY less than the conventional stuff. guaranteed!
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Lauren Reply:
September 17th, 2011 at 9:16 am
Have you heard of the book The Value of Nothing, by Raj Patel? He suggests – using this style of economics – that a cup of coffee really costs thousands. He also has an earlier book about food distribution.
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Katie Reply:
June 7th, 2010 at 2:44 am
Kate,
I have two new-baby meals to do in the next two weeks, and I’m feeling the same pressure. To be generous and take a meat dish, or to make some awesome black bean soup or veggie burritoes? Both moms would buy grassfed meat for themselves, so I want to give them the good stuff, but I hesitate.
Thanks for your suggestions!
Katie
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Wow. This was great and put into words things I have been thinking about for a while. Thanks for being honest and sharing your ambivalence with us. And your boy is an angel – God will truly bless is giving spirit.
I can also relate to the contradicting thoughts of “God can bless whatever we feed them” and “feed others what you would feed your own.”
I agree with starting small and local. I have volunteered to bring snacks to my daughters class which is in an inner city school in DC. I cube raw cheese (from Trader Joe’s), serve rice crackers (we’re gluten-intolerant), make stove top popcorn with coconut oil and sea salt, and I just got rave reviews for sending squares of baked oatmeal (Kelly the Kitchen Kop’s recipe.) The teacher said even the boy who will only eat sugar ate this!
There is a growing movement to bring food from farm to table in the school cafeterias. It’s slow and depressing at times, but they’re doing hands on cooking classes with the kids. I watched some low-income kids eat strawberry salad with parmesan cheese and balsamic viniagrette!
And I recommend soup and homemade sourdough bread for new baby mamas. I just double what I’m making for my family.
Kudos to anyone who is doing anything to help.
Blessings!
.-= melanie´s last blog ..Pigtails! =-.
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That’s just wonderful. High fives for Paul. I run a family daycare and am thrilled to provide the kids I look after a healthy lunch everyday. From the snacks some of their parents pack I know they aren’t eating too well at school. I feel good knowing that at least a few times per week they are getting healthy whole foods. I love that they actually enjoy these foods most the time too.
.-= Melodie´s last blog ..Vegetarian Foodie Fridays: Curried Chick Pea Soup =-.
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Oops. Instead of “eating well at school” I meant to say “eating well at home.”
.-= Melodie´s last blog ..Vegetarian Foodie Fridays: Curried Chick Pea Soup =-.
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First, you have much to be proud of with Paul. His enthusiasm shines bright on his face.
My “child” is twenty-three and I’ve struggled with some of these same questions, especially when he started school.
It seems that many children eat breakfast and lunch at school, sometimes for free or at greatly reduced prices. Then, there are the programs like the one you wrote about that provide dinner. Here, where I live some children can get the evening meal at the local Boys and Girls clubs. What I wonder about is, when do these children get to enjoy seeing their parent(s) or another adult at the table while eating a meal? If the meals are provided, there is no reason to make food by the adults in the childrens’ lives.
How does the SNAP (formerly called food stamps) program factor in to the meals for these children?
Is there any outreach to show adults how to cook nutritious low-cost meals for their families?
I know, I know more questions than answers! It’s a conundrum, indeed.
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Katie Reply:
June 7th, 2010 at 2:58 am
Karen,
Someday I’d love to do just that sort of outreach, to show parents how to cook well. However – a single mom who works full time (or more) just isn’t able to accomplish even a little bit of what I’m able to do in my kitchen. I worked for a season cooking for and talking nutrition with unwed mothers in an amazing local program. So many of them had a desire to learn to eat more nutritiously, but when push came to shove, they just couldn’t quite keep it together.
Who knows the back story of these kids. Perhaps their parents are too absent to even get the SNAP program, or they let it lapse, or they forgot to go to the store, or they don’t speak English and don’t even understand what’s available…again, having mentored a young person in the welfare system, I know how easy it is to make a mistake and suddenly have a month without your benefits.
You make a good point, though, that this issue isn’t all about food – it’s about families, society, and the degeneration of the family unit. Change has to start there, first.
Thanks, Katie
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Karen Moeller Reply:
June 8th, 2010 at 9:07 pm
Our lives are fast-paced these days and it definitely leaves less time for food preparation. I used to do a lot of cooking each day when my son was younger. Now, we’re all working and time is at a premium.
I’ve changed how we eat. More of it is prepared in advance on the week-ends. Lots of black bean burgers, salmon cakes and cubed chicken. I call it our “fast food menu” since it takes about 5-7 minutes to cook the main item. Then we pair it with a salad, fruit and call it a meal.
At times I fantasize that these food/meal prep skills we’re learning on the internet could also be taught on the micro-level in our communities…
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Lauren Reply:
September 17th, 2011 at 9:21 am
I noticed that the girl who loves her “yummy vegetables” depicts herself as eating them alone on the couch. The culture of food is so lacking in thsi situation, regardless of the backstory – should a food-assistance family every get on their own feet financially, the children especially have no idea how to cook or what to eat when given a choice. The canned noodles are perpetuated. Tragic.
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Katie Reply:
September 19th, 2011 at 1:53 am
Lauren,
I never noticed that!
Very good point – better to teach kids to cook healthy foods than just give them the food…
Katie
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These photos bring tears to my eyes. You must be so proud of your son!! And while many of these foods seem like a “compromise” nutritionally, it may be the most nourishing meal some kids eat in a day. So, kudos!!
We planted a garden this year in our community garden plot. We have a covered spot for “donations” where gardeners can donate extra produce, and every day one of us volunteers to drive it over to the food bank.
Fresh veggies all summer long in those food boxes!! Someone had the vision a few years ago, and it took off. Now many local churches work on plots together exclusively for the purpose of donating.
.-= Llama Momma´s last blog ..time warp =-.
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Katie Reply:
June 7th, 2010 at 3:00 am
LM,
Katie
How beautiful! I think a lot of programs like that are taking off, what a step in the right direction!!!
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Your post hits home, along with your concerns because we are a family trying to eat healthy and more “green” AND my husband directs a non-profit ministry that feeds people in need in our community. Getting the community involved, by donating “seconds” from gardens, is a great start. We also have hunters that donate fresh venison around deer season. My other suggestion is for each of US to THINK when we purchase things for charity. So often we end up getting the surplus stuff that NO ONE else would eat (like Atkins carb-free pasta in a box) because it was cheap. But we relish donations of whole wheat flour, brown rice, whole wheat bread, natural peanut butter, etc. It costs a little more for us to donate that way, but it’s definitely worth it.
PS- Can’t wait to go back through the comments carefully and see how many great suggestions our organization can glean! (www.gracetothenations.com)
.-= Paula@Motherhood Outloud´s last blog ..A Little Help for a Praying Wife & Mother =-.
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Katie Reply:
June 7th, 2010 at 3:04 am
Paula,
What an opportunity you have to make a difference! I think the best suggestion here is to teach people to cook nutritious meals. If your literature asks for brown rice and whole wheat flour, you can host bread baking or stir fry making classes. I bet there are little old ladies in your community who baked bread for their 9 children every week who could come in and knead away!
I spent a season teaching unwed mothers about nutrition, and for them I focused on “Super Foods”, how to get more out of the vegetables and fruits you choose. It’s also how I kicked off Kitchen Stewardship in the beginning – what CAN you eat that packs a nutritional punch, instead of what you need to avoid. It’s a tough, tough balance though, because the poor have so much baggage already, and they rarely have time or energy to go the extra mile for their food.
I’m geeked that you serve venison at your center! What a fabulous relationship you have going!
Katie
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You have an awesome son. So thoughtful of him! While cheap food is not the best, it is certainly better than what is in the dumpster.
I always advice baby steps with everything. Feeding them peanut butter and jelly sandwhiches is a baby step to much greater things. I used to eat these damned things all the time and I was in better health then most.
Awesome post and very inspiring.
.-= Primal Toad´s last blog ..Hunter Gatherer Study from In Defense of Food =-.
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Way to go Paul! Katie, you’re so inspiring to raise my own children to care for those less fortunate.
There are no easy answers to the tough questions of food quality, waste, and charity. But there must be some solutions, though they will vary region by region. I don’t live in America, so I don’t know the rules, but it seems that you can’t make something yourself to donate? Instead of donating bought white bread, could someone make brown for cheaper or would it have to be from a certified something bakery (or homemade cookies instead of granola bars)? And does all the food have to have an eternal shelflife? For example, if you know there are x number of lunches to be made each day, could you bring in x number of a nutritious but perishable item? It would be just one day, but we’re all about baby steps, no?
School/church/charity gardens. It also makes a difference why these kids are in the program – whether the caregivers are unable to provide food or whether it is a case of neglect. For those parents who have motivation but not the means, a project to organize the willing could be helpful. Perhaps a local farmer would trade volunteer hours for something edible. A contest to get out the word and create awareness – who can bake the best cookie containing oatmeal, with the cookies going to the kids’ dinner (at least no HFCS).
I think the biggest problem is that so many people don’t know how to cook. At all. I know no one has time anymore, but a free course for parents (with a babysitting service) on how to cook quality food with little money would probably make the biggest difference. If it’s a problem of people not caring, there is not much you can do, but for those parents that do care and are motivated, such a course could teach them how to spend much less on food, and get better nutrition out of it. I’m not talking organic or anything, just real.
But, then again, I have absolutely no experience in this, so maybe I’m just spouting idealistic nonsense.
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Katie Reply:
June 7th, 2010 at 3:30 am
Naomi,
I totally agree that the lessons are the key here. You actually CAN bring in homemade goodies to this organization, but I bet my sourdough bread would go right in the trash! I could make some regular whole wheat sandwich bread, though, so that is a thought. What a small dent in the 2500 daily meals… There I go being pessimistic, though. Next time we go, maybe I’ll take some homemade granola bars!
Katie
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Naomi H Reply:
June 7th, 2010 at 8:26 am
I was really surprised that they make so many sack dinners. Grand Rapids isn’t that large of a city. 2500 is a lot, and one loaf feels like a lot of effort for not much effect. But perhaps loaves could be frozen until there is enough to make it worth bringing, or someone organized could network, i.e. get bread baking families to bake bread (or cookies etc) and pick it up at drop off points once a month or so.
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What a neat post
I’ve thought similar things as I’m donating food (usually that I got for free) that I wouldn’t let my kids eat. But it will be eaten and appreciated, so it is what it is. I’ve just signed up to be a peer breastfeeding counselor at WIC, which I hope can make a difference as a peer, not a professional.
.-= Cara @ Health Home and Happiness´s last blog ..Fermented Sweet Tea- Kombucha! =-.
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That is so awesome for Paul to choose this as his birthday activity! I think the more our children’s generation can learn about hungry kids, the more things might change.
This is definitely a struggle, and I don’t have the answers either, but I am guessing to those kids something is better than nothing. In our society – and I am talking about America, those that eat real and nourishing foods are mostly among the privileged Sadly people are not educated about the best ways to eat – it takes time to do research and trial and error and time is money. Time is a luxury that those who are starving just don’t have.
So yes, it is hard to know the answers. But I think small changes can do a lot. Start at home and in your community and change things little by little.
.-= Jenn AKA The Leftover Queen´s last blog ..We Have PEEPS! =-.
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I have had the same feelings. I coupon and get all of these freebies that I donate to others. I figure that I am able to give so much more than I would otherwise be able to give. Plus, honestly this is how most people eat. However, at the same time I have felt guilty about giving these processed foods that we don’t eat. How wonderful that Paul did this for his birthday. Happy birthday to him!!
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Thanks [again] for the timely post! For my son’s 2nd Bday party this weekend, we collected 97 lbs of non-perishables. My heart was warmed as I realized many parents sent organics, not just the cheap store brands… and baby foods–all too often neglected! I too had the same reservations about many of the ingredients. But in the end I realized that our commitment to the local food bank, the lesson taught and the example shown made a much larger difference in our family and school community than I could have expected. 3 parents told me they were going to do the same thing next year!
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Great post and good job Paul! Way to start young. I have volunteered at KFB in the past too but my kids were too young at the time. This past summer we did a few things for KFB that made me happy. I purchased a few items for donation as my budget would allow like organic peanut butter from Costco, fruit cups with no added sugar- only fruit juice (which is better than pudding or Jello cups), organic granola bars and cheese sticks. I was able to include my kids by purchasing a giant bag of brown lunch bags (which are on their wish list) and asking my children to draw/color on them to make them cheerful. I used to wonder as well why these kids are going hungry when their family probably has food stamps already, but I have come to the conclusion that just because a family receives assistance, does not mean that the food makes it onto the table for one reason or another. The bottom line is that those sack meals ARE dinner for a great number of those kids. Here is a link to their wish list if you didn’t have it posted already.
http://www.kidsfoodbasket.org/support_wishlist.php
.-= Kelly E.´s last blog ..Olivia’s New Ride! =-.
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Katie,
What a great post with great questions, even though so many of them seem so unanswerable. Thanks for writing this and for posing the questions that are hard to talk about and even harder to answer.
I agree with many of the commenters that when we donate food that we should strive to give the best quality that we can. But I also agree with others that for some people the reality is that they need food, any food, and that not as healthy food is better than no food at all.
And the waste! Oh, it makes me cringe! But, how could we say that it is more important to keep plastic out of the landfill than it is to feed hungry people. Obviously serving people comes before saving the planet, at least in my view, but I also realize that how we treat the earth affects people too.
What a tangled web. I’m so thankful that we can trust that our God is bigger than all of our questions and our problems and that He can and will use our service and giving for His glory!
~Emily
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Finer Things Friday: Mr. Turtle // Jun 10, 2010 at 7:36 am
[...] June Flowers 20. Studying the Word @ Like a Bubbling Brook 21. Allison @ Alli ‘n Son 22. Kitchen Stewardship – My 5yo Volunteers to Feed 85 Kids 23. Amy Lynne @ Mom*s [...]
I have a friend who teaches meth addicted moms how to cook. She teaches simple, nutritious food that is cheap. She says that some of these mothers had moms that never cooked – so the next generation never learned how, either. She teaches mac and cheese, oven fried chicken (and how to cut up a whole chicken), pizza…among others. She teaches them how to read a label.
I have also read that some food stamp programs are limited to the name brands (ie hormel bacon vs store brand) only. And for 2% and skim milk – not full fat.
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Your young man must be an amazing person!
I don’t know about your program’s setup or limitations so this may or may not be a practical way to ease your internal conflict, but how difficult would it be to arrange for the kids to stay for a good hot meal once a week or so? If you had them get involved with the actual cooking process it can change some of the habits they adopt as they grow older. Many parents are frighteningly uneducated about how to feed children, and providing some kind of exposure to home cooked meals can break the chain of parents feeding their families ALMOST as well as their parents fed them. Several meals can be created economically on a large scale and, while not quite the food I would put on my table, it can certainly be made healthier than boxed or canned meals and processed, individually wrapped cheese slices. Tacos spring instantly to mind as a kid favorite that can be easily assembled even by a very young child, and prepped in large quantities in advance. Chicken can be oven fried in large quantities in most school cafeteria (if that is where you were assembling your meals). Given enough time in an after school program kids could make their own veggie soup start to finish.
It is so wonderful that Paul is generous enough to give his time and energy to help his peers. Few enough children are able to see beyond their own desires. It would be great if his energy were to inspire other youth to help themselves their families and communities by learning what he learns from you!
On the subject of food stamps, ugh. I know a family that must get by on food stamps, single mom, low income, you know. She wants to get better food for her children but her benefits only cover certain things, no organic anything (even if it is on sale cheaper that the regular, which does happen sometimes), no farmers market or direct from source, no bulk food stores (Sam’s Club type) even. And yet she could walk out of the store with 10 pounds of sugar and a box of twinkies if she wanted! To add insult to injury, the money never lasts until the end of the month no matter how careful she is, and if she works extra hours to make up the extra money, she does not have time to cook meals and has to rely on more expensive (and less nutritious) prepackaged food (which, of course IS covered by benefits), defeating the purpose. This situation seems to be the normal state for families in these programs, so it is sad but not surprising that so many children do need help with regular meals. I do my best to help my friends, the children have often been invited to my house for a weekend late in the month because “Oh, my daughter needs company out here, we don’t have many neighbors…”. The oldest is learning how to cook real food in my kitchen, which is the biggest help I think I can give them, long term. Perhaps anyone who worries about full vs. nourished could invite a local teenager over to learn a simple crockpot recipe or two! Chili was my nourishing “poor food” of choice when money was painfully tight for me a short while ago, and dried beans and a jar of tomato sauce are inexpensive and go a long way.
Apologies for rambling, it is late, I have just discovered and read much of your marvelous blog here and found this post touched on a subject very dear to me, getting truly nourishing food to those who need it most!
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Katie Reply:
June 15th, 2010 at 2:44 am
CookinMommy,
It warms my heart that you’re reaching out in such a personal way to this family. That knowledge will make a difference for the oldest! Food stamps are so tricky; I’ve known people who had more to spend on food with assistance than I had without, and they still ran out of $ by the end of the month. ??
Katie
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The Season for Giving — 64 days and counting « Simple Organized Living // Oct 22, 2010 at 11:25 am
[...] with Kid’s Food Basket and can attest to the huge volume of food the give away EVERY DAY! Katie from Kitchen Stewardship recently spent some time there with her son…who requested to give back for his 5th birthday! [...]
Good for you and Paul for helping, Katie! That’s the most important thing–to recognize that there /is/ a need and to actually get up and /do/ something about it.
And–as someone who once was one of the kids eating the handouts and the charity meals…they appreciate food. Good food, bad food, gross food, yummy food…anything that filled the belly.
BUT, that being said, it was always extra-special when we got something really good, that it seemed like “real” families would eat. Fresh fruits and veggies, better brands of different things.
I don’t know. Now that I’m all grown up and in a much better situation (and it was only a few years when I was a kid that things were even that bad), I struggle with the same questions.
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The elementary school my kids went to would take kids to fill bags. Both of my kids were able to do this at least once. I was happy to see that food MUCH more nutritious than what the kids said went into the bags. When it comes to being hungry the concentration is what is more filling?
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