Almost half of the 950 kids who attend school at Central Junior High School in Springdale are living below the poverty line — your gifts are helping make sure the students and their families have regular access to nutritious food.

“When you look at the inability for a hungry child to learn, we are working to help them overcome that,” says Paul Griep, principal at the school.

This is the third year Central Junior High has offered the Central Family Store food pantry to students and their families. With food provided through your donations to the Food Bank, the pantry typically serves around 30 families each month.

“This is really a great time to talk to families, to see if there is anything else they need,” Paul says.

Families learn about the food pantry through a newsletter sent to all student homes at the beginning and middle of the school year. School counselors also help identify students whose families may need extra support.

Families can pick food up from the pantry once a week. They have access to canned food, and occasionally to meat and fresh produce.

The groceries not only help local families fill tables at home, but also help fuel students’ bodies so they can learn more effectively in school.

“[Families] feel very appreciative,” Paul says.

Thank you for making school pantries like this one possible. When you do, you brighten futures for so many neighbors.