SIUSLAW NEWS ❚ SATURDAY, JULY 8, 2017
Hungry
from 1A
food insecure — more than the
population of Eugene.
The issue is only compounded
during the summer time. While
school programs provide meals
to students during the school
year, the need for nutritional and
filling choices becomes greater
as latchkey teens stay at home
with empty cupboards.
Starting Monday, Boys and
Girls Club will serve free hot
meals Monday through Friday to
any teen between the ages of 12
and 18. The meals will be served
twice a day at noon and 4 p.m.
Every teen is welcome, regard-
less of their affiliation with the
organization.
Boys and Girls Club Interim
Director Chuck Trent explained
the reasoning behind the move.
“While the general economy
across Oregon has improved, and
it has improved somewhat in
Florence, the families that are
coming in are basically minimum
wage with no benefits and part-
time work. They can’t afford
food,” he said.
What is of particular concern
for Trent is those families who
just hover above the poverty line.
In these instances, they make too
much money to qualify for feder-
al and state assistance, but they
don’t make enough to cover food
costs.
“These are the ones I lose
sleep over, the ones hidden in
plain site. Often times the parents
don’t know where to ask for
help,” Trent said.
The teens, he believes, are in
need of the most assistance.
“How many toddlers do you
see wandering the street corners
during the summer months? The
reality is, parents will do whatev-
er they have to do for the younger
children but often the teens are
240
left behind. So that’s what we’re
trying to do,” he said.
Trent teamed up with Food
Backpack for Kids, the Mapleton
School District and Mapleton
Food Share to start an ambitious
program to provide food for chil-
dren throughout the Siuslaw
region.
“We were at a loss of how to
help kids during the summer-
time,” said Dale Edwards, direc-
tor of Food Backpack for Kids.
Backpack, which started in
2012, first began as a supplemen-
tal food program during the
school year. While the school
provided up to three meals a day
to students, youth were often
going home hungry over the
weekend.
The catalyst for the program
started when Backpack organiz-
ers heard a story of a child who,
having no food over a weekend,
was forced to go dumpster div-
ing.
Edwards investigated the issue
and found that the occurrence
was not uncommon or limited to
a few individuals.
“Some of these kids were liv-
ing in tents, they were couch
surfing. It was staggering,” he
said.
So a group began raising
funds. Soon, their program, made
up entirely of volunteers, was
able to provide food for students
to have over the weekend.
But the problem was what to
do once the school year ended.
“Hunger doesn’t take a vaca-
tion,” Edwards said. “We know
that there are children in need
during the summer, but we were
at a loss of how to develop a pro-
gram to feed them.”
Enter Chuck Trent.
Seeing that the need for a sum-
mer meal program was rising
over the summer, he approached
Edwards, along with Karen
Harden from Mapleton Food
Share and Jodi O’Mara from the
Mapleton School District, to
bring food to the hardest hit fam-
ilies in the area.
The cost for the summer food
program comes from a variety of
sources. The Kiwanis Club of
Florence gave a sizeable dona-
tion, as did Art and Jean Koenig.
Oregon
Department
of
Education
Child
Nutrition
Program will reimburse the food
itself.
It
sponsors
U.S.
Department of Agriculture food
and nutrition plans to support the
growth and development of
Oregon’s children.
The requirements for the pro-
gram can be strict, however.
Meal plans are regulated, calling
for certain amounts of wheat,
vegetables and milk for each
meal.
Boys and Girls Club employee
Illene Armer, who is in charge of
implementing the food program,
sees this as a challenge.
“If (kids) don’t like it, they
won’t eat. And then they’ll
starve,” Armer explained. “An
adult realizes food is food, but a
teen won’t eat just carrots and
celery. So we work hard on mak-
ing a homemade, complex meal.”
The menu includes chicken
alfredo,
tacos,
homemade
mashed potatoes and potato
salad. The broccoli is sautéed and
the asparagus is roasted.
Preparing the food can be dif-
ficult with the facilities they cur-
rently have. With just a few hot-
plates and a toaster oven, Armer
works diligently with volunteers
from Food Backpack for Kids to
HOURS
Is your family prepared?
If an emergency happens in your community,
it may take emergency workers some time to reach you.
You should be prepared to take care of yourself and
your family for a minimum of 240 hours.
Get your emergency fi rst aid kit started with these essentials:
❑ First aid manual
❑ Aspirin or pain relievers
❑ Laxatives, diarrhea medicine
❑ Rubbing alcohol, petroleum jelly
❑ Soap, salt, baking soda
❑ Sanitary napkins, matches
❑ Triangular bandages
❑ Elastic bandages, pressure dressings
❑ Cotton balls, disposable diapers
❑ Scissors, needles, tweezers
❑ Popsicle sticks, splints, heavy string
❑ Thermometer, paper tape
❑ Syrup of Ipecac
❑ Personal prescription medications
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25-room secured memory care facility. Living at Spruce Point has many benefi ts such as
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management from an on-site nurse. Staff is available 24-hours a day using the latest technology in the
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Transportation
Resident Parking Available
Medical Transportation
Transportation at cost
Property Convenient to Bus line
Additional Amenities
Activities Onsite
Activities Off site
Devotional Services Onsite
Outdoor Common Areas
Indoor Game Room and
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Beautician and nail-tech onsite
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7 A
prepare and cook food at home.
While the program expects to
serve an average of 50 teens per
serving — they can do more if
the need arises — organizers fear
they may not be able to reach
children in more rural communi-
ties. They believe there are at
least 100 teens in the surrounding
areas that need assistance.
To help alleviate this, Trent
partnered with Mapleton. Not
only will Food Share and the
school district inform parents and
youth about the program, but
they will bus the teens down to
Florence for meals.
Currently, the Mapleton team
is only able to bring teens to
Florence on Tuesdays and
Thursdays. Team members are
looking for volunteers to drive
the rest of the week.
No special certification is
required, just a normal drivers
license and a clean driving
record.
Ultimately, Trent hopes that
the meals will not only help alle-
viate hunger among the popula-
tion, but also increase engage-
ment.
“My hope is, when youth
come for food they’ll see our pro-
grams and the fun they can
have,” he said. “When you take a
look at poverty, it’s the lowest
kids who are in the lowest level
that we have the toughest time
getting through school and grad-
uating.
“You get a summer brain
drain, and that’s where kids can
get into trouble. Here we do
math, reading, and science, but
we do it through games. They’re
learning all summer long and
they don’t know that they’re
learning. They’re just having a
good time.”
For Trent, helping children get
a step up is a lifelong passion.
“I’ve been where these kids
are. I was one of the lucky ones
because I had someone who did
what I’m trying to do with these
kids. If that didn’t happen, my
life would be so much different,”
he said. “When the kids are here,
we give them hope for the future.
And at the end of the day, it
equals love.”
For more information or to get
involved, contact the Boys and
Girls Club of Western Lane
County at 541-902-0304.
THIS WEEK COAST
ON
THE
A W EEKLY L ISTING OF C OMMUNITY E VENTS IN THE F LORENCE A REA
S UBMIT ALL E VENTS I NFORMATION VIA E MAIL TO P RESS R ELEASES @T HE S IUSLAW N EWS . COM
July 8
“Animals of the Dunes”
with Dina Pavlis
1-2 p.m.
Open to public
Siuslaw Public Library
The Siuslaw Jam Music
Celebration
2 p.m.— free, “Intro to Jazz
for the Young and Young at
Heart”
7 p.m.— tickets required,
“Jazz and the American
Popular Song”
Florence Events Center
2nd Saturday Gallery Tour
3-5 p.m.
CUSTOM ENGRAVING
& CUTTING
Awards • Plaques • Name Badges
Gifts • Signage • Glassware
Open to public
Various galleries in
Florence
2ndSaturdayGalleryTour.com
July 9
Mapleton Lions Pancake
Breakfast
7:30-10:30 a.m.
$7 for adults, $3 for youth
Mapleton Lions Club
88148 Riverview Drive
July 10
SAPPSA meets
3:30 p.m.
Open to public
Siuslaw Public Library
DONATE NOW!
Maximize your donation by donating
to Cars for a Cause by Dec. 31st.
We accept cars, trucks, RVs, boats
& motorcycles CALL NOW!
541-997-5691
541-361-9080
jmirvis@charter.net
Florence, Oregon
sappsa@oregonfast.net
Siuslaw Soil, Water Cons-
ervation District meets
6:30 p.m.
Open to public
1775 Laurel Place, Ste #4,
Florence
July 11
KXCR presents Storyteller
Chris Chandler
7 p.m.
Tickets required
Class Act Theatre
Us TOO Florence Prostate
Cancer Education/
Support Group
5-7 p.m.
Open to public
Presbyterian Church of the
Siuslaw 541-999-4239
July 13
“Build a Better World”
Youth Summer Reading
Programs
10:30-11:30 a.m.
Open to youth
Siuslaw Public Library
Siuslaw Friendship Club
Annual Picnic
11:30 a.m.
Open to public
Woahink Lake Yurt
541-294-8270
We buy, sell and consign quality
estate/heirloom jewelry & furniture.
Gold, silver, platinum jewelry with
precious & semi precious stones.
Florence Antiques
July 15
Power of Florence
7 a.m.— Pancake breakfast
9 a.m.— Power Walk
Events all day
Open to public, various
locations
PowerofFlorence.org
The Covered Bridges of
Oregon
County Transfer & Recycling
Commerical • Residential
Weekly, Bi-Weekly, Monthly,
One Time Pick-Up.
Auto, Home, Life, Business
Flood, Antique Auto, RV’s
Medicare Advantage Plans
Medicare Supplements
Health Insurance
Call 541-997-8104,
St. Vincent de Paul
KXCR presents Amy Sue
Berlin and Kindra Kinsey
7 p.m.
Donations welcome
Siuslaw Public Library
1-2 p.m.
Open to public
Siuslaw Public Library
Van Fans Ice Cream Social
1-4 p.m.
Open to public
Florence Events Center
Sand Master Jam 2017
1-5 p.m.
Registration Required
Sand Master Park
Fanny Rugburn: “Drag
Me to Neverland”
8 p.m.
$10 admission, cash; open
to all ages
Class Act Theatre
Village Grooming
ESTATE JEWELRY AND
ANTIQUE FURNITURE!!!
2315 Hwy. 101 • Florence • 541-997-8460
July 14
Phone (541) 997-9497
1234 Rhododendron Dr / Florence
Siuslaw News
148 Maple St. • PO Box 10 • Florence, OR 97439
(541) 997-3441 • Fax (541) 997-7979
www.thesiuslawnews.com
4981 Highway 101,
across Munsel Lake Rd
541-305-5411
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