Power Snack visits Iowa Falls-Alden CSD
posted on Wednesday, November 28, 2018
“It’s not an outward visible appearance where you can just look at a student and see that they are hungry,” said Iowa Falls School Nurse, Laura Thies. “It’s mostly determined by vocal, behavioral and physical symptoms.”
With 450 students on free and reduced meals at Iowa Falls Schools, teachers and staff like Thies are no strangers to students showing up to class hungry. Fortunately, students always have someone to turn to if they need a snack to help get them through the school day.
“We provide a small snack, like crackers or milk, if a student approaches us and says he or she is hungry,” explained Thies. “We also make sure our students know about the programs we have at our school and in our community that are there to help, like the Power Snack coupons.”
Students in Iowa Falls receive a lot of love from their community. In addition to local food pantries and weekly meals held at the Methodist Church, students in middle or high school can also enroll in the BackPack Program.
And of course as our hometown, we are always excited to travel to Iowa Falls and lend a helping hand.
Prior to winter break, we delivered Power Snack coupons to 75 students within the Iowa Falls School District. “We have a lot of places we like to call home throughout the state of Iowa, but we always love helping out those in the community our company began,” said Iowa Select Farms Communications Director, Jen Sorenson. “These students are receiving $5 coupons for shaved or sliced deli ham and $3 coupons for a loaf of whole wheat bread. With these ingredients, the kiddos can make their very own Power Snack!”
The Power Snack Program is designed to give food insecure students the means to make high-protein ham sandwiches. These coupons, dressed in a super hero theme, empower students to take to the grocery store, pick up deli ham and a loaf of bread and be able to make their own snacks without having to worry about help from a parent or guardian.
“I am excited to share these with our families,” Heetland said. “The ham and bread coupons were a great addition to help students get through extended breaks. And the recipe books are a great way to give students extra ideas on nutritious meal or snack ideas.”
To date, the Power Snack Program has partnered with more than 119 schools and school districts statewide to support 18,000+ food insecure students -- an overall investment of over three million dollars in the fight against hunger.
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