Failing for Food
With 1 in 5 children across America hovering in the poverty zone, we’ve all suspected that many are going hungry. But a recent survey showed some of the shocking strategies many of our school children are using to survive:
- Flunking a class so they will have to attend summer school, so they’ll continue to have breakfast and lunch each day.
- Saving food from their school lunches so they will have food on the weekend.
- Visiting more affluent friends around meal times so they will be fed there.
These are terrible choices for a child to feel like they have to make. Even more heartbreaking is how teens try to shield their younger siblings from the pain of hunger. Many reported:
- Going without a meal so younger children in the family can eat.
- Finding odd jobs to raise money for food for the family.
- Stealing food from the store.
Sadly, insecure teens are less likely to ask for help, and more likely to hide the fact that they are hungry. Their desire to fit in also makes them vulnerable to predators who might use the promise of money or food to take advantage of them.
All in all, we have a lot of work to do. Please be in prayer for the children in our community who are facing these kinds of terrible pressures. And please give and volunteer to support Everett Gospel Mission and your local food banks. Everything helps!