Power Snack visits Riceville CSD
posted on Tuesday, November 20, 2018
“Being nourished is a basic need,” said Michelle Dohlman, K-12 Counselor at Riceville Community School District. “Students who are hungry are not ready to learn and are more susceptible to being sick and missing school”
Food insecurity is a common problem among students grades K-12. In fact, 1 in 5 Iowa children are considered food insecure, meaning they do not have enough to eat.
“Our students truly benefit and rely on programs like Power Snack to meet their basic nutrition needs,” said Michelle. “When a student’s tummy is grumbling, they want something to eat. Although they might try to focus on their schoolwork, their hunger is a big distraction.”
A program of Iowa Select Farms and the Deb and Jeff Hansen Foundation, Power Snack provides children with $5 coupons for deli ham and $3 coupons for a loaf of whole wheat bread. The coupons are distributed four times throughout the school year, typically before extended breaks when students don’t have access to school breakfast and lunch programs. In total, each student will receive enough supplies to make 36 ham sandwiches.
“As farmers and pork producers, we are passionate about assisting hunger-relief efforts in Iowa, particularly those directed towards children,” said Allyson Ladd of Iowa Select Farms. “Which is why we’ve increased the number of children served through Power Snack by approximately 13,000 since 2012. This year alone the program supports 23,267 children statewide.”
With the help of school nurses, teachers, counselors and principals, Power Snack coupons are discretely distributed to students that qualify.
“We are planning on mailing the coupons to families in need throughout the school year,” explained Michelle. “This program is extremely generous and we’re grateful the ability it provides us to help families in our community.”
141 students within the Riceville Community School District will benefit from Power Snack—a contribution valued at $4,512 and enough resources to make 5,076 ham sandwiches.
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