'It's a gift'

PACE — When two former educators realized that many students' primary source of nutrition came from free meal programs at school, they decided to do something about it.

Rebecca McKeithen described being at a meeting at T. R. Jackson Elementary school in October 2016 when someone said that some students would not have food to eat over the Christmas break.

The school did not have anything in place to provide food for these children, so she called her friend Kellie Hardy. They decided to do it on their own.

"We're going to do this. I don't know how, but we are going to do it," both McKeithen and Hardy said in unison. The school identified 86 families that needed help.

"We had zero dollars, zero cans of spaghetti, zero everything," said Hardy, "but we had this grand plan that we were going to save the world."

They did it, McKeithen said, by using coupons, buying in bulk and using their own money. They fed those 86 families. By the end of the school year, they had fed 200 families. McKeithen points out that the 200 number means boxes. Each box equals two meals a day for two weeks for a family of four.

It grew from there and the FoodRasing Friends Inc., nonprofit organization became a reality. McKeithen and Hardy said "it takes a village" to accomplish what they have done.

The law offices of Gibson and Jarvis helped them incorporate. Accountant Crystal George helped them become a nonprofit corporation and Lifeguard Ambulance donated delivery services. 

"We were overwhelmed with what our community did for us," Hardy said. "They have really wrapped their arms around us."

McKeithen said they want to protect the dignity of these families. They use school guidance counselors to identify families that need help. Food deliveries go directly to the school and they distribute the boxes.

The two make the process as smooth as they can with no forms to fill out.

"If you need food come and take it," Hardy said. "We want to remove any barrier between the child and the food."

Their immediate concern is gathering food for Labor Day weekend.

Plans for the future include expanding the list of schools they service in north Santa Rosa County, starting a mobile food truck/pantry and attracting sponsors.

Their newest sponsor is Advanced Dental Concepts in Pace. They are holding a contest between their dentists where whatever money is raised the doctors will match.

If you need help, go to the FoodRasing Friends Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pg/FoodRaisingFriends. There you can find information on food pantries, how to give donations and fund-raisers for the group.

"This is not a handout," Hardy said. "It's a gift."

This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: 'It's a gift'