by Joyce Mills
A big THANK YOU to the 15 shoppers who took the time and energy to Christmas shop for 27 children. I can only imagine how happy this made mostly boys and a few girls, who receive backpacks filled with food every Friday.
Having just read some facts on hunger in West Virginia, I was pleased to read that the WV Office of Child Nutrition is leading the nation in serving nutritionally balanced meals to its students at school. However, these same children live in a household that does not have access to enough food. This is due to low wages or no job. More than 1 in 4 WV children live in a household that does not have enough food. 60% of WV school children qualify for free or reduced priced school meals. That’s more than 173,000 children whose family household income is below or nearly below the federal poverty level. Raleigh County is in that number, as well as, students at Beckley Elementary. Sadly, the meals provided at school may be the only food many children have access to each day.
Our children deserve to have the most basic needs met in order to live vibrant, productive lives. FBC is doing its part to stop hunger in children. Your gifts of money and food donations certainly are making a difference with some children. AND, yes, it is a MISSION FIELD right in our back door. Sometimes Home Missions are neglected and we send our money far away to other people in need. That is all well and good but we cannot overlook our own community needs.
THANKS! THANKS! THANKS! – for not only providing food for the weekends but also for making certain that 27 kids had a good Christmas. The donation needed in January is cans of Pasta with MEAT. Just place on the back counter in the Church kitchen.