SPOKANE, Wash. – At Shadle Park High School, a small group of students is making a big difference by volunteering to pack and deliver meals through the Bite2Go program. This initiative is part of a larger effort to combat food insecurity among students in the Spokane area.
Since the launch of the fundraising campaign through NonStop Local, around $20,000 has been raised towards the $82,000 goal. All funds are directed to feeding food-insecure children in the community.
Anesu Whachu, one of the 12 student volunteers, shared her experience. “I feel like we’re together in this. It’s not your problem. It’s our problem as a whole. And I’m just happy to help with that,” she said.
Whachu explained how the program has changed her perspective. “It makes me more aware that other people don’t have the things I have at home. And that just changes my way of thinking and how I treat people,” she added.
The Spokane Public Schools (SPS) district delivers more than 188,000 food kits annually through Bite2Go. Aaliyah Ashley-Meek, the district’s Northwest Engagement Navigator, oversees the program. She is proud of the students’ dedication to lifting up their less fortunate classmates.
Ashley-Meek emphasized the importance of the program. “We know that everyone needs to eat, and everyone needs to feel like they have a place to get a snack, or they’re going to have meals over a weekend or over a long break,” she stated.
Student volunteers like Whachu are responsible for filling orders each week. “Each kid every week chooses what items they want based on different categories of shelf-life food. And we pack the bags every single week. And then we also deliver them to their teacher or person in the building that they trust to hold on to it,” Whachu explained.
Whachu finds the work rewarding. “They’re just so excited and they know that the bags will really last for the weekend, and they don’t have to worry about things like food,” she said.
Her involvement has inspired her to live more selflessly. “Living in my personal bubble and forgetting about the other world isn’t really a thing nowadays. I would say that’s very selfish because like focusing on my own life and not serving others is against my whole purpose of living,” Whachu said.
Whachu hopes to one day open her own nonprofit to support those in need within the community.
The Bite2Go program serves nearly 189,000 bags to around 5,250 students from pre-kindergarten to high school each year. However, funding is still needed for 300 students. The program’s annual cost stands at $2.2 million.
https://donors.2-harvest.org/page/bite2gokhq
