By Guy LaLonde Jr.
The day began early at the Publix corporate office for our annual packing event with kidsPACK. Together, Publix associates, kidsPACK volunteers, and board members packed more than 10,000 weekend meal packs, enough to help approximately 5,000 children over two weekends.
This year felt especially sobering without our dear friend Brian West. Brian cared deeply about this community, and we missed his presence today. Seeing so many people come together to serve children was a meaningful way to carry that spirit forward.
KidsPACK helps children facing hunger when school meals are unavailable. We now serve 92 schools across Polk and Hillsborough counties. In Polk County, approximately one in five children faces food insecurity. Behind that statistic are children who deserve to return to school on Monday ready to learn, without having spent the weekend worrying about food.
For $430, you can support one child with kidsPACK for an entire school year. Every contribution and every hour volunteered helps us reach another child.
Thank you to Publix for its continued commitment to kidsPACK and to our community. Thank you to the incredible Publix associates we met today, our kidsPACK board members, and every volunteer who worked so hard. I am grateful for each of you and for what we accomplished together.
