Thursday Nights, Four Sites: Free Meal/Snack Bags for School-Aged Students from Feed Branford Kids
Non-profit Feed Branford Kids (FBK) board president Kristine Klarman said FBK will head into the 2020-21 school year by hosting four sites every Thursday evening where any Branford family with school-age students can stop by to pick up free weekend meal/snack bags. No registration or advance notice is required.
Beginning Thurs. Sept. 17, FBK will be distributing bags of food to Branford students every Thursday from 5 - 6 p.m. at the following locations: Branford Community House, 46 Church St.; Branford Hills Park, Jefferson Road and Burban Drive; FBK Warehouse, 21 Business Park Drive, and Veteran's Memorial Park, 120 Brushy Plains Road. Klarman said FBK volunteers will be at the four sites come rain or shine.
FBK provides bags containing two servings each of milk and juice as well as two easy-to-prepare breakfasts and lunches, together with two snacks.
In March 2020, after school buildings were closed due to the pandemic, FBK, with an assist from the Branford Board of Education, mobilized delivery to continue to provide FBK meal/snack bags weekly to over 180 Branford kids registered for the 2019-20 school year (FBK volunteers usually delivered the food to school, where it was confidentially placed in each student's backpack to take home).
On March 23, FBK also began offering a twice weekly (Monday and Thursday) curbside pick-up program to help any community families in need during the pandemic. Families were welcome to drop by either the FBK Warehouse and Trinity Episcopal Church on the Branford Green for pick-up, based on the day of the week. The final day of the twice-weekly pick-up program was Sept. 10.
Now, FBK's new Thursday night, four-site program is in place.
"This new delivery is replacing the school delivery and our Monday/ Thursday pick ups," said Klarman. "It is open to all school age kids in Branford, no registration required."
To assist all-volunteer FBK, make a donation online at www.feedbranfordkids.org or Venmo. For information, visit www.feedbranfordkids.org ; or find @feedbranfordkids on Facebook.
