Good Shepherd Food Bank receives $20,000 from P&G for Expansion of Child Hunger Programs

P&G staff volunteer at School Pantry distribution at Edward Little High

Auburn, ME (Oct. 7, 2013) — Good Shepherd Food Bank announced it had received a gift of $20,000 from The Procter & Gamble Co. for the expansion of Child Hunger Programs in Maine, including School Pantry and the BackPack Program, at a check presentation event this afternoon.

After the check presentation, P&G employees from the Tambrands plant in Auburn, ME, along with representatives from Good Shepherd Food Bank, handed out food to kids and families in need at a farmers market-style distribution at Edward Little High School.

Nearly one in four Maine children is not getting the nutritious food they need to live a healthy life and learn in school. While more than 80,000 Maine kids qualify for free or reduced meals in school, they often lack access to food outside of school. Good Shepherd Food Bank is working diligently to provide food for Maine children when they are most vulnerable – after school, on weekends and vacations, and during the summer – through programs such as School Pantry, BackPack, and Summer Food Service.

Good Shepherd Food Bank will use the $20,000 award from P&G to build the organizations capacity to offer child hunger programs, the expand current programs to new sites throughout Maine, and to ensure program sites have adequate capacity to operate sustainably.

“This gift will have a huge impact,” said Kristen Miale, president of Good Shepherd Food Bank. “By expanding child hunger programs and reaching more kids with nutritious food, we’re able to give these children at chance at success. How is a child supposed to concentrate on their homework when all they can focus on is their empty stomach? Making sure kids have adequate food is one of the most basic things we can do to start them off on a successful path.”

Currently, the Food Bank’s BackPack program is reaching 800 children each week at 20 schools with nutritious food to take home for weekends and school vacations. In addition, the Food Bank operates XX School Pantry sites in X counties across Maine. The. By the end of the school year, the Food Bank aims to have 16 School Pantries up and running.