Become a Champion for Kids & Start Their Day off With Breakfast #SIMPLEGiving

Disclosure:  I participate in this program on behalf of Champions for Kids and The Motherhood. All opinions are my own.

Did you know that 9.8 million kids – more than ever before – get free or reduced price school breakfast on an average day, but 10.6 million eligible kids go without?  Being hungry has a huge effect on how a child performs at school.  9 out of 10 teachers actually say a healthy breakfast is the key to academic achievement.

To me children shouldn’t have to worry about meals and it is so terrible that so many kids do.  As a mom I want my kids to have everything from a healthy breakfast to a great start on their education.  I stress to them pretty much every morning how important it is to have a good breakfast.  After reading about all the kids in need, I have been explaining to them about all the kids that are missing out on breakfast.  My boys immediately asked to help, which honestly surprised me that they understood and wanted to help.

Two weeks ago while we where on vacation, my sons’ school collected donations for our local food pantry and while I am so sad we missed it, I figured it is always a good time to help.  So rather than arrange a food collection from our friends and neighbors, since they just donated and helped, I figured I’d take my kids shopping and have them help pick out some breakfast foods that we would then drop off to our community food pantry.  I think having them be a part of the shopping and then dropping off was a great experience for them.  I want them to want to help others and realize how hard it can be for some, since my kids take so much for granted since they don’t know better.  I think even my 2 year old was understanding that others need help.

Shopping at Target for groceries to donate:

Gotta love Kellogg’s for breakfast!

We stopped at the People’s Resource Center in my town to drop off the food.  Their food pantries serve over 10,000 children a year in our county.

Kellogg Company and Diamond Foods actually created a partnership where through May 15, they are encouraging community projects across the country to benefit children in need.  SIMPLE Service Projects encourage others to host or organize an even to collect breakfast foods that you would then donate to a local organization that serves children in need, such as a food pantry, shelter or daycare center.  Whether you do something similar to me and pick up foods to donate or you enlist you local church, school or neighborhood community, every little bit helped.  Champions for Kids has 4 easy steps at http://championsforkids.org/simple/.  If you share your project at championsforkids.org/share by May 15, 2014, Kellogg’s will even make a matching donation of up to 1000 breakfast items through Champions for Kids to help children in need!