Ready, Set, Go! program preparing weekend food backpacks

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI)- The Ready, Set, Go! program helps to ensure kids aged 5-13 have ready access to clothing, hygiene and weekend food. The backpacks are being prepared in the United Way of Idaho Falls and Bonneville County offices at 1649 Woodruff Park Circle in Idaho Falls.

The program has helped provide clothing and shoes to over 700 children since August 2022. The purpose of the program is to help create equity in classrooms in regard to clothing and food.

The Ready, Set, Go! program originally started in the Hawthorne Elementary School where at the time only 100 backpacks were given a week. It now gives over 400 backpacks a week.

"I've heard from a lot of people that it's kind of heartbreaking to see it grow. So quickly, but also like really relieving that we have like that we're able to meet the need. We have a lot of people in the Idaho Falls area that face food insecurity. In fact, there's one in eight kids in Idaho that faces food insecurity. And so for us to be able to meet that need and help the kids is really, really almost heartwarming," said Alyssa Sherwood, the community impact manager at United Way of Idaho Falls and Bonneville County.

Sherwood added the food in the backpacks is also very nutritious.

"Our goal with this program is the children that are experiencing food insecurity because of their circumstances at home. We want them to have fresh, nutritious food, easy to make, and they won't need a parent or adult supervision to help. So we've got nutri-grain bars, we got beef jerky, we got some microwavable food. We do apples and oranges and string cheese to get them through the weekend before they get back to school, on Monday," said Chris Wiersema, the President and CEO of United Way of Idaho Falls and Bonneville County.

Wiersema adds the baskets will make an immediate impact on the over 400 children who receive them.

"A young man who is in one of our funded after-school programs. He kept running over to his backpack during the class and just kind of bending over, taking a quick bite of something, and then running back into his little group. And finally, the teacher went over and said, What's going on? What's in your backpack? And he goes, Well, it's a banana, and I'm just trying to take it a bite at a time. So I have half the banana to take home to my brother. So he has something to eat tonight. And it was like, Oh no, we have to fix this. We have to fix this now. So that is one of the schools that we've not only created the Backpack program, but they also have a food pantry from our donated food."

A volunteer in the Ready, Set, Go! program, Sheralee Moore, says preparing the bags can actually be really overwhelming as you learn about the impact.

"It's been really eye-opening to know that even just one mile up the street, there's an elementary school, Hawthorne Elementary, that has 78% or below poverty level, that there's a huge need that they don't have access to food, they have a lot of food insecurity, a lot of other insecurities that they have going on that lots of times in our community, we're sheltered from."

Moore said making the bags is filling a really important need for the community at large.

"That's what's been really heartwarming to be able to see is I found that there was a need. And so I reached out to the small group of people that I know, and people are all very, very willing and wanting to help. I mean, there is a huge need to be able to I think there's a lot of good being done."

If you want to help out their cause you can reach out to the United Way program at 208-522-2674 or can go to their website here. You will also find a list of items you can donate to the program.

"We're reaching out to this community, is we know that they're a very giving community. And right now we need your help with food to fill the backpacks," Wiersema said."For the last few weeks of school. If you don't have time to run to Sam's or to Costco, you can go online and make a donation and we will get that food shipped to us. We pack every week, so don't feel bad if you can't get here this week and you want to drop it off next week. And we just truly appreciate anything that our community can do. We have a lot of corporate partners that are out there offering to help. And you know, this is just a small way that you can feel that you're part of the solution for our food insecurity for children in the community."