Action Where Our Interests and Hearts Are: The Benefits of Food Programs for Children
Poverty in North Carolina, my home state, is on the rise. About 18% of North Carolinians are officially classified as poor, and about 1 in 4 children is poor. Almost 1 in 5 people in North Carolina is officially categorized by the federal government as hungry, which gives us the fifth-highest rate in the country, not exactly a ranking to be proud of (Nichol, 2013).
[caption id=”attachment_204" align=”alignright” width=”303"]
Image from PBS’s “Who counts as poor in America?” Click the image to go to the article. A related video, “What strides have we made in the war on poverty?,” is below.[/caption]
More children in my county, 60%, qualify for free or reduced lunch than the state average of 56% in 2011–2012 (Durham Public Schools; Kids Count Data Center), so while my area is more hard-pressed than the state average, the state as a whole is experiencing increases in struggling families; The percentage of students who receive free or reduced lunch has risen each year from 48.4% in 2007–2008.
This is a problem, not just for the children and families going through difficulties harsh enough to need free or reduced lunch but for the state and country as a whole.
Research indicates that children benefit from welfare programs in real ways, like increased life expectancy, better health, more years of schooling, higher incomes later in life (all the better to contribute to society, if you just look at money in versus money out), and fewer behavior problems (Yglesias, 2014; Hildebrandt, 2009). Children whose mothers received welfare were able to increase their standardized test scores, and not only that, but the longer the mother was on welfare, the more the benefit was seen (Chyi, 2013). The benefit was greater the more disadvantaged the child was, so while being on welfare may not completely negate the effects of poverty, it could help reduce the negative effects (Chyi, 2013).
If we as a society allow children to go hungry, we put society at a disadvantage. Those children will grow into adults who are less healthy (and thus more of a drain on our medical systems and social safety nets like food banks) and less able to contribute in an economy that increasingly focuses on higher-skilled jobs. These are just a couple of the negative consequences of inaction now.
So far, I am unimpressed, to say the least, by legislators, who have the ability to help alleviate the situation but fail to do so, and by many members of the public, who seem to mistake need for dependence and greed. In any system, there will be flaws, and, yes, there will be people who try to take advantage of any system. However, ignore the adults for a few moments, and consider the children who benefit from programs like free and reduced lunch. Regardless of how bad (or good) things are at home, they are able to eat something, get nutrition, during the school day. How is that possibly a bad thing?
Rather than just focus on my anger at *others* to do something, though, I try to channel that anger and energy into something positive, doing as much as I can as an individual. I want to not just *be* interested in issues but be proactive, putting action and intention into the issues I care about.
While my core focus as a mother is on the welfare of my own child, ignoring the welfare of those around her does me, her, and the rest of us all a disservice. We must look beyond our own needs, as we are able, and care about others. First, I try to be aware of issues like this within my immediate community. Awareness and education are the first steps towards addressing any problem, and knowing more about the issues helps me be able to voice my opinions as a voter, too. I have been involved with volunteer programs like:
- Backpack Buddies. As part of this program, volunteers pack bags of food for a handful of qualifying students to take home each Friday. The food is supposed to help feed the family for that weekend. Initially, the program was just sending enough food home for the one student, but with a family that is hungry, the food was being shared and didn’t make as much of a difference as was intended. Sending home enough food for the whole family ensures that the student as well as the rest of the family will not go hungry.
- Durham PORCH. This is an easy way to get involved with helping provide food to those in need. If you have food that you can donate to the cause, you notify a local organizer, and that individual comes to your house to pick up the bag of food you leave outside. How much easier can it get?
These programs require very little time but let me contribute to the community’s efforts to feed those in need. As my pregnancy has approached the final weeks, I have been physically unable to pack bags as part of the Backpack Buddies program, but after my daughter arrives (and I can function semi-normally again), I look forward to participating again.
If there are issues you care about, that you feel you want to change or help with in your community, there are likely ways you can help, even if it’s just in small ways every once in a while. I challenge you to put action where your interests and heart are.
Related video:
- Chyi, Hau and Orgul Demet Ozturk. “The Effects of Single mothers’ Welfare Use and Employment Decisions on Children’s Cognitive Development.” Economic Inquiry. Jan. 2013. Vol. 51, Issue 1. pp.675–706.
- Durham Public Schools. “Free/Reduced Lunch Statistics by School for 2012.” http://www.dpsnc.net/images/pdf/lunch-data-menus/lunchstats/free-and-reduced-october-31-2012 Accessed 13 Jan. 2014.
- Hildebrandt, Eugenie and Patricia Stevens. “Impoverished Women with Children and No Welfare Benefits: the urgency of researching failures of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program.” American Journal of Public Health. May 2009. Vol. 99, Issue 5. pp.793–801.
- Kids Count Data Center. “Percent of Students Enrolled in Free and Reduced Lunch.” Accessed 13 Jan. 2014. http://datacenter.kidscount.org/data/tables/2239-percent-of-students-enrolled-in-free-and-reduced-lunch?loc=35#detailed/2/any/false/1021,909,857,105,118/any/4682
- Nichol, Gene. “From Silence to Savagery, Pain for the Poor Intensifies.” The News & Observer. 28 Dec. 2013. http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/12/28/3488213/from-silence-to-savagery-pain.html 13 Jan. 2014.
- Yglesias, Matthew. “Welfare Works: new research on America’s oldest welfare program shows the virtues of giving money to the poor.” Slate. 13 Jan. 2014. http://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2014/01/welfare_works_for_kids_children_whose_parents_get_money_grow_up_healthier.html Accessed 13 Jan. 2014.
