Chatom works together to support child nutrition
As summer begins, students who benefit from the Washington County High School backpack program have no worries that the healthy food provided during the school year will stop.
During the school year, the backpack program is an initiative that allows students to have health-giving meals not only at school during the week but over the weekend, which ensures students obtain their required daily nutrition.
Resources are available during the summer at the Washington County Public Library, where free lunches and snacks are offered daily during their annual learning program, allowing children to get a nutritious meal and a high-quality learning experience.
Janice Price, who taught home economics at Washington County High School before retiring in 2020, started the school backpack program. Now Kress Behlen, home economics teacher, runs the initiative, with help from WCHS students and supporters.
Behlen said, “Unless you have food, shelter, and security, you cannot go on to those higher functioning behaviors such as learning new materials or fully concentrating during class.”
Shelf-stable meals and snacks or cash donations are accepted to help sustain the school program. Behlen takes cash donations and travels to the nearest wholesale club to pick up necessary supplies used to fill the backpacks.
Backpacks are filled with canned goods and perishables every Thursday. These foods are available solely through donations by community members as this program currently receives no grants. Churches in town, including Chatom Baptist Church (CBC), and organizations such as WoodmenLife offer substantial donations to this program allowing food to be put in backpacks each week.
CBC purchases and donates accessible foods ready to go in backpacks as well as ingredients to be used by Behlen’s Entrepreneurship class. The students in this class make and sell baked goods and beverages to the student body. Part of the money funds the class, and the rest is used to purchase supplies for the backpacks.
Chatom Baptist helps by purchasing needed supplies and delivering them to the home economics building. Jerry Roberson, the pastor at CBC, said he believes the job of the church is to “serve as the hands and feet of Christ,” adding that supporting the program is a small thing that makes a big change.
The WCHS counselor, Cassie Hadley, plays a significant role in getting the backpacks to the students. Parents can get in touch with her if they want their children to receive the backpacks.
Additionally, teachers often observe students who may benefit from this program and give the students' names to Hadley, who gives them to Behlen. From there, Hadley ensures the backpacks get to the students on Friday before they load the buses to leave for the weekend.
On Monday, backpacks are returned to be used for the next week. This program is available to the WCHS student body, grades 5th-12th. During a typical week, around three to seven backpacks are sent home with students.
The Washington County Public Library steps up to provide nutritious meals during the summer months. These resources are available through Feeding the Gulf Coast, a food bank that seeks to increase access to nutritious meals and create stable economic security. Through this organization, breakfast, lunch, and snacks can be served to youth 18 years of age and under.
At the library, lunches, and snacks are served in between or closely following the program that runs from June 3 to July 26.
Beth Roney, the Children’s Program Coordinator, said this is just another way that WCPL helps children and families all summer long.
Roney said, “To me, the best part about Feeding the Gulf Coast is that there are no qualifications for the children to participate, other than age and showing up for programs at the library. It takes some of the stress off parents to feed their children while they are out of school, so the kids get to just be kids.”
In previous years, children were required to eat their meals at the site where they were served. Due to updated policies, children are now permitted to take these meals home with them to have at their leisure.
Tags: Chatom
