About 20 Tacoma teachers and other striking staff joined volunteers today to prepare sandwiches for kids who depend on free and reduced-price meals at schools they’ve not attended for several days.
They met in the Hilltop neighborhood at St. Leo Food Connection, which runs a program during the school year that provides kids with backpacks full of food on Fridays so they don’t go hungry over the weekend.
“Because of the teacher strike, we wanted to continue the backpack program,” said James Harper, coordinator of that program at St. Leo. “All the food was donated by volunteers and teachers.”
About 50 loads of bread and 150 pounds of peanut butter and jelly were donated by noon, Harper said.
“Our kids benefit from the backpack program and since we can’t be with them directly, we wanted to show our support and show them we care about them,” said Rebecca Hollis, a third-grade teacher at Sheridan Elementary. “We didn’t choose to strike for them to go hungry.”
Liz Nyland, a counselor at Sheridan, said more than 80 percent of the kids at her school count on being fed there. Nyland said about 40 kids at Sheridan use the weekend backpack program.
Kirsten Lawson, mother of Kaitlyn, 7, and Matt, 5, brought her kids to the Food Connection to volunteer as sandwich makers.
“I wanted to get my kids doing something,” Lawson said as she watched her daughter put lettuce and cheese slices on turkey sandwiches. “It’s good for them to understand some kids don’t have food to eat.”
Sam Colella, a 13-year-old who attends Bryant Montessori, said he wanted to come and help because “it’s something to do and it helps out the community.”
“I do know kids that rely on the food at schools,” said Sue Little, a substitute teacher for the district. “It’s great the Food Connection stepped up.”
In a separate effort earlier this week, food-service workers from the district helped deliver perishable foods to the Emergency Food Network.
Kevin Glackin-Coley, director of St. Leo Food Connection, said teachers would help deliver food to kids Thursday and, if the strike keeps going, on Friday.
The backpack program is set to serve 430 students at 14 Tacoma Public Schools campuses in the 2011-12 school year, he said. Stephanie Kim: 253-597-8692 stephanie.kim@thenewstribune.com
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