Jun 6, 2014 3 min read

WAYNESBURG – PNC Bank has provided a grant to the Community Foundation of Greene County to help sponsor the Greene County Weekend Food Program during the 2014-15 school year.

The $3,000 sponsorship grant will help provide packages of food for elementary children in each of the five school districts in the county.

“We are only as strong as the communities in which we operate,” said Stephanie Cipriani, PNC Community Development Banking Market Manager for Southwestern Pennsylvania. “Our support of the Community Foundation of Greene County allows it to address the critical nutritional needs of children in the region and help prepare them for success in school and life.”

The Weekend Food Program provides a packet of child-friendly food items to help supplement weekend meals for a small number of students who are selected by the school social workers, food service staff and/or other teachers and administrators, based up family circumstances and need.

The program, which started in 2012 serving about 36 children in two schools, now provides 140 weekend food packs each week across all five school districts. A weekend food package costs an average of $5 per child each week, or about $195 per child for a full school year.

Each school district runs its own program with food purchased through their food service program. The non-perishable food is packed each week into grocery type bags, which are then distributed to the children by a teacher or social worker. The packs are usually put into the child’s own backpack to take home.

The Greene County Weekend Food Program (also known as a Backpack program) exists because of the Greene County Food Security Partnership, a broad community collaboration to address food security needs in Greene County. As the fiscal agent for the Weekend Food programs, the Community Foundation of Greene County is able to receive contributions for the program. The contributions are distributed to the school districts as grants, to provide the food for distribution.

“Support from local businesses, like PNC Bank, provide the backbone of the Weekend Food Program,” said Bettie Stammerjohn, executive director of the CFGC. “The program is entirely privately funded and we are so grateful for their contribution and efforts to help end hunger among the children in our community.”

Childhood hunger is a serious problem in our Greene County community. Feeding America reports that one in five children in southwestern Pennsylvania live with food insecurity. According to the October 2013 National School Lunch Program statistics, 2,393 (or 42 percent) of the 5,331 Greene County children enrolled in school (K-12) were eligible for free and reduced meals.

Most of those children (2,090) were eligible for free meals. Yet, according to statistics compiled by the Corner Cupboard Food Bank, only an average of 480 children receive assistance through the local food pantries each month.

The Weekend Food Program provides supplemental assistance for children whose families are experiencing difficulty in providing adequate food security for whatever reason, even if just for a short while.

According to Stammerjohn, schools have reported that children participating in the program are coming to school on Monday mornings ready to learn, are experiencing fewer behavioral problems and show less fatigue during the day.