Tag Archive: food security


In the Kitchen with the Ritz-Carlton

Filed Under: Programs by Tracey Savell Reavis — 1 Comment
October 9, 2012
Hart Middle Career Day Cooking Demo

A student from Hart Middle School participating in a Ritz-Carlton cooking demonstration. Photo courtesy the Ritz-Carlton.

With a reputation for unwavering commitment to service, it should come as no surprise that The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company is actively involved in supporting youth and providing volunteer services in low-income communities around the country. As part of their “Succeed Through Service” program, the hotel chain has been instrumental in educating students about the importance of good nutrition in partner schools of Communities In Schools of the Nation’s Capital.

With “Succeed Through Service,” The Ritz-Carlton creates and delivers hospitality themed enrichment programs. The goals of the initiative are to engage, contribute and inspire. The curriculum, which sometimes brings students into the hotels and also takes employees into classrooms, includes lessons that teach social skills and dining etiquette, safe food handling skills, cooking demonstrations, healthy food preparation, and public speaking and presentation skills.

The staff of The Ritz-Carlton Corporate Office in Chevy Chase, Md., and The Ritz-Carlton, Georgetown, in Washington, D.C., have been volunteering and providing leadership as a partner of Communities In Schools of the Nation’s Capital for the past three years.

“This is a significant partnership,” said Tobeka G. Green, chief executive officer of Communities In Schools of the Nation’s Capital. “The Ritz-Carlton staff engages with the students and parents, teaching critical life skills that are important to the overall development of our families and the community. They listen to where they can be supportive and they deliver needed resources. That’s just invaluable.”

Appreentice for the day

A culinary apprentice for the day. Photo courtesy the Ritz-Carlton.

Many of the projects are geared toward teaching life skills that will help the students achieve in school, graduate and go on to bright futures. Last year, two dozen students traveled to the company’s headquarters in Maryland and The Ritz-Carlton, Georgetown to experience firsthand the kinds of jobs available in the hospitality industry. But there have also been those that focus specifically on the importance of nutrition. Last Spring, staff and volunteers from the corporate office and hotel, and students from Hart Middle School in Washington, D.C., went to Ferebee-Hope Elementary School to refurbish the school’s garden. Planting a garden and having fresh fruits and vegetables is a starting point on the path to good nutrition. The company supplied the gardening tools, plants and seeds. Harvesting the fruits and vegetables – strawberries, bell peppers, cabbage, cucumbers and onions – took place in the fall.

On two separate occasions, the students at Hart were treated to a food preparation demonstration by the executive chef from The Ritz-Carlton, Georgetown and the vice president of culinary for The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company. The produce came from the Ferebee-Hope garden. The chef showed students how to handle raw foods, stressed the importance of healthy eating based on the new “food plate” guidelines and demonstrated how to prepare healthy dishes.

“Students are highly engaged when working with our chefs,” said Sue Stephenson, vice president of Community Footprints, The Ritz-Carlton’s social responsibility program, and a recent addition to the board of directors of Communities In Schools of the Nation’s Capital. “You can see the light bulbs go on with the students when they learn new facts about nutrition. The sessions are fun and they are helping students learn to make good food choices.”

Said Green, “Teaching our students healthy eating habits and teaching them to make informed decisions is setting them up for success.”

Tags: , , , , ,
Comment

Filling a Vital Need

Filed Under: General, Site Coordinators by Briana Kerensky — Leave a comment
October 4, 2012

Today’s blog post is by Communities In Schools of Nevada’s Communications Coordinator Nassim Agange.

Erika and Diana

Communities In Schools of Nevada Site Coordinator Erika Araiza (right) helped Diana access resources from the local food bank. Image courtesy Univision.

Most of the students served by Communities In Schools of Nevada are referred to the site coordinator for their poor academic performance and behavior—but Diana Sánchez was not referred to Communities In Schools for those reasons. Diana learned of our organization’s services at her school and decided to seek out assistance on her own. She found her way to the Communities In Schools Resource Room at Rancho High School her junior year when she didn’t have the supplies she needed for class. Diana went to the resource room for notebooks, but left knowing that there was a caring adult on campus she could turn to whenever she needed something, big or small.

Diana is a smart, articulate, and motivated student who built a caring and lasting relationship with the Communities In Schools site coordinator at Rancho High School, Erika Araiza. Diana connected with Araiza almost immediately, and gradually began to feel comfortable asking for more support. Diana never volunteered that she was struggling with hunger; moreover, she didn’t realize it was a problem at all. She learned to accept daily hunger as a reality. It wasn’t until the site coordinator began sharing snacks and connecting Diana to the weekend backpacks provided through the local food bank, that she began to fill that need.

Over the course of the school year, Diana came to trust that Erika Araiza and Communities In Schools would be there for her. The site coordinator became a confidante, academic counselor, and supportive resource that Diana could turn to when she needed additional guidance. Diana admitted that one of her greatest limitations was her family’s lack of resources.

As a senior this year, Diana hopes to continue to do well in school. Diana now knows that Communities In Schools will do whatever it takes to help her stay in school and achieve in life.

Diana, Araiza and Communities In Schools of Nevada were recently profiled by their local Univision station. Check out the video below and read the article (both are in Spanish) here.

Tags: , , , , ,
Comment

Weekend “Food Bags” Feed Those in Need

Filed Under: Programs, Volunteers by Briana Kerensky — Leave a comment
October 2, 2012

Today’s blog post is from Communities In Schools of Chesterfield, Va. Executive Director Jay Swedenborg.

Many students served by Communities In Schools of Chesterfield, Va. receive breakfast and lunch through school on weekdays. But on weekends, food is certainly harder to come by.

Since 2009, Communities In Schools of Chesterfield has partnered with the FeedMore program in Central Virginia to provide nutritious weekend food for students in need in grades K-12. The program started at five Communities In Schools sites in the county, but has since expanded to serve an additional three schools.

Each week, 375 students receive bags full of food to get them through the weekend. Students are identified by school personnel, including site coordinators, principals, and guidance counselors. We always make sure that we have parents’ permission, and then each Friday afternoon, participating students pick-up a small drawstring bag filled with enough food for six meals. That’s two breakfasts, two lunches, and two dinners. All the food we hand out is non-perishable and easy to prepare. Each bag weighs about six pounds and easily fits into a child’s book bag.

The food bags are packed by FeedMore volunteers and are delivered to our schools each week by volunteer delivery drivers. The program is offered at no cost to the schools and no cost to the families!

This program is a true blessing for many of our families. Warren Hammonds, a program manager with FeedMore, shared an experience with me that he had one day making a delivery to Bellwood Elementary School. He was approached at his car by a man, his wife, and their young child as he unloaded bags. The parents didn’t speak much English, but managed to ask Hammonds if those were the food bags to go home with the students. He indicated they were and he asked if they needed any assistance.

The mom started to cry as she thanked him as best she could, saying that her son received food each weekend and if it was not for this program, she would not always be able to feed him.

Kimberly Reynolds, the Communities In Schools site coordinator at Ettrick Elementary describes her students as being very eager and excited program participants. Every Thursday, students remind Reynolds that Friday is the “Food Bag” day and ask what is going to be in the bags each week. She says that the students are all smiles when they pick up their bags and several have told her that they love Fridays – “it is the best day of the week!”

Tags: , , , ,
Comment

Partners with a Purpose

Filed Under: Families, Programs by Erica Rafferty — Leave a comment
July 31, 2012
Essary with family and lunch

Communities In Schools of East Texas Site Coordinator Nancy Essary (left) with a church volunteer and children receiving lunch.

The First Baptist Church of Diana wanted to help the students of its small community in Diana, Texas. It was 2007, and one of the parishioners was concerned that the students who participated in meal programs during the school year would go hungry over the summer without the same assistance. Knowing they wanted to do something but needing additional help, they called Nancy Essary, who had just finished her first year as site coordinator for Communities In Schools of East Texas and was rumored to help match community resources to student needs.

“Your phone will ring. There is someone on the other end, and the person either is offering something or need something. And either way works well. What this all boils down to is relationships – having a relationship with another organization that wants to help,” said Essary.

Essary coordinated with the New Diana Independent School District (NDISD) to find students’ addresses and phone numbers, and to get parent permission slips signed. This allowed the church to focus on planning the logistics of purchasing, preparing and delivering lunches. Five days a week for nine weeks, starting the first weekday after school let out and ending the last weekday before school started, church and school staff volunteers delivered lunches across Diana.

Since that fateful phone call five years ago, the site coordinator estimates that this joint partnership has served approximately 7,500 lunches to students.

This past summer, about 75 church members and several school administrators from NDISD joined forces to plan and drop off lunches to nearly 25 students of all ages. Oftentimes, delivering those meals means driving miles from the community center, down unpaved roads and to homes that literally are in the middle of nowhere. Many of the children may see no one else but their family and the volunteers for the entire summer.

For Essary, not only does the summer program give students nourishment, but it also serves as a great opportunity to make sure other student needs are met as well.

“The point is that we are bringing another caring adult into their lives,” she said. “They are hearing another positive voice, and that is just a win-win across the board.”

In the past, there was a donor who bought the lunch meat and bread for the summer program. This year, Essary said most of the food was purchased out of pocket by the church volunteers and school staff.

Despite the shortage in funding, the program never has turned a student away. In fact, when volunteers learn that a family may need more than just lunch delivered, the church finds a way to provide groceries or meals on the weekend, too.

To Nancy Essary, this summer lunch program is a living example of Communities In Schools’ mission to surround students with a community of support.

“This is the true heart of Communities In Schools – partnering with these other organizations. It’s always a team effort, and everyone has the same vision and focus of what will help these students achieve their potential.”

Check out some fantastic photos of Nancy Essary and the lunch program!

Tags: , , , ,
Comment

What We’re Reading

Filed Under: Dropout Epidemic, What We're Reading by Briana Kerensky — Leave a comment
June 22, 2012
empty desks at national mall

Nonprofit organization College Board placed 857 desks on the National Mall to bring attention to the dropout crisis. Photo courtesy Alex Wong/Getty Images.

New York Times: While it’s a huge, positive milestone when a family is able to leave a homeless shelter and move into a house of their own, it’s rarely the end of the journey. The next big step is making the house a home, which means being able to afford furniture and appliances. While there are many organizations dedicated to helping families transition out of shelters, one new nonprofit in Detroit, Humble Design, is dedicated to helping families find everything they need for the next step, from beds and dressers, to silverware and wall art. Since 2009, Humble Design has used donated and discarded furniture to outfit more than 100 homes for transitioning families.

Many Communities In Schools students are homeless, moving between different shelters and other temporary residences over the course of their childhood. One of the most important things a student needs to succeed in school is a safe, stable place to call “home.” Organizations like Humble Design are helping to meet that need by transforming houses into comfortable and welcoming spaces.

9 News Now: Even though Washington, D.C. is in the midst of a heat wave this week, it certainly isn’t deterring thousands of tourists from visiting the National Mall. Anyone who braved the heat and took a walk to the Washington Monument on Thursday was greeted with 857 empty school desks, representing the students who drop out every hour of every school day.

The display was organized by the nonprofit organization College Board, and is intended to call upon leaders—including this year’s presidential candidates—to make education reform a prominent issue in their campaigns.

Students who drop out are more likely to live in poverty, earn thousands less over a working lifetime, suffer poor health, be dependent on public assistance or enter the criminal justice system. Read our fact sheet on the dropout crisis to learn more about the social and economic impact of dropping out of school.

CBS: On Wednesday, the nation’s largest physician’s group announced that they support having as a requirement yearly instruction aimed at educating students about obesity. The American Medical Association (AMA) agreed to back legislation that would require students at all levels of public schools be taught about the causes, consequences and prevention of obesity.

For students living in poverty, eating healthy food is not always an option. Many urban neighborhoods across the United States lack proper grocery stores, leaving parents unable to purchase fresh produce for their families. In addition, healthier foods tend to be more expensive. Families trying to feed themselves with food stamps are unable to afford healthy food without making financial sacrifices elsewhere.

Communities In Schools knows that every child needs healthy food in order to focus in class and learn. Across our network, our site coordinators make sure that every child gets the meals they need. They also organize numerous activities that students can participate in to exercise, stay in shape and have fun.

Tags: , , , , ,
Comment