Age
12
Country of Residence
United States
Founding Story: What was the spark that led you to start your project? What was the "Aha!" moment that led you to get started and see the potential for this to succeed?
I learned from a friend at school that she often looks after her younger siblings while their mother shops at the food pantry, which doesn't allow children beyond the waiting area. My friend said that this is difficult, and that she often struggles knowing what to do with the younger children and how to keep them busy. I thought about the Baby-Sitters Club and how the characters have Kid Kits they bring to babysitting jobs, and I wondered if we could create something similar for the waiting area of the food pantry.
How do you encourage other people to join your project or learn about the problem you’re working on? If you have a new idea, tell us how you will do this in the future.
Local neighborhood newsletters, social media, posters at coffee shops, telling people at school about it, inviting people to donate (especially during neighborhood yard sale events), reaching out to other food pantries to see what has worked well for them, posting successes and requests so that people can see how well the project is working and so they know how they can help.
How many people are on your team?
10
Impact: How has your project created impact / made a difference so far? Or, if at an early stage, what will impact look like?
We anticipate increased engagement of children in the waiting area of the food pantry, particularly with early literacy activities and materials. Because they care invited to take the materials home, we anticipate that materials will be shared with families who may need them. We think this project will be a relief for caregivers who might not have things for their kids to do (kids will still need to be supervised, just like they are now). We also think it will be a relief for kids who may have been bored previously. We also think it will raise morale and positivity at the food pantry by creating a happier atmosphere and encouraging reading, playing, and interacting. Additionally, children and families in our area will benefit by having a constructive place to donate lightly used books, toys, games, and art supplies; they will know they are doing something positive!
Project Category
My project is a brand new / emerging idea
Project Stage
Idea (We’re hoping to get started in the future)
Project Summary: Describe your project in one sentence
Children are not allowed in our local food pantry shopping area, and they are often left in the waiting room with a secondary adult or teen; this project will provide books, games, and materials for hands-on projects for children to do while their adult shops at the pantry.
Project title
Pantry Pals
The Problem: What problem are you helping to solve? Why does it matter to you and your community?
Taking care of younger children is a big responsibility, and when families go to the food pantry, they might not bring along any toys or other things to do. The problem this project solves is teens and other people who are in charge of younger kids at the pantry, waiting for adults to shop. This is also an opportunity for us to provide something that will encourage kids to engage in reading, playing, and interacting.
Website URL(s) or social media handles.
What’s Next: What are the next steps you plan to take to grow or strengthen your project over the next year? If your project is still in the idea stage, describe the steps you will take over the next three months to launch or begin developing it.
First, we will meet with the pantry organizers to talk about how the project should work and what would work best for their space and their volunteers. Next, we will agree on roles and who will do what. Then we will begin advertising for and collecting donations and creating signs. We already have a donation of a shelf we could use in the waiting area, so we would like to use that to hold things.
Your Innovation: What is different about your project compared to other programs or solutions already out there? How is your project new or innovative?
This project brings books and other materials to kids at the food pantry, which hasn't been done previously in our community. It might seem like a simple fix but there are a lot of steps including coordinating with the pantry organizers, collecting materials, and maintaining the supplies. It's also unique because it benefits a lot of different groups of people.
Your Solution: How are you solving this problem? Share your specific solution.
We will collect donations of books for all ages, puppets, simple games (nothing with a lot of pieces!), and art supplies (no-mess things, like scratchboards), and we will work with the food pantry to establish an area for these items. Our group will take care of making signs letting visitors know they are welcome to use the items and take them home if they'd like. We will continue to collect donations and add items, and we will visit the pantry regularly to clean the items and restock as needed. We don't want to make extra work for the food pantry volunteers, so we will meet with the pantry organizers before starting anything.
Your team: What role(s) do your team members play? How do you share leadership with them?
We are still building our team, but we are a group of middle schoolers who will work together to plan the project, communicate with the pantry, create signs and ads for the community and pantry patrons (so they know about donating and pantry patrons know they are invited to use and take home the materials), collect donations, and visit at least twice a month to clean and restock the area, making sure we have items for all ages. We will translate signs to make the area welcoming to all patrons.
