NOBLESVILLE, Ind. (WTHR) - It started as a lunchroom discussion among Noblesville teachers.
“We recognized a need for students to be nourished over the weekends, and so we got together and made a plan strategically for how to feed our friends, our children, on the weekend,” said Fueled for School President Kristina Trusty.
The non-profit weekend meal program has been up and running for two years.
“We typically serve between 250 and 350 (kids each weekend),” said Trusty.
But when school closures were announced last week, they knew they had to do something “to make sure the kids that are getting our meal packs still get them, even though school is out,” said Fueled for School Director of Operations Audra Shock.
“We teach them each day at school so that thought of them not eating is almost too much to bear,” said Trusty.
On Friday, Eyewitness News reported that Fueled For School was asking for donations as they began to transform their program from a weekend meal service to a weekday one.
“There was a response. We were blown away by our community,” said Trusty.
“We’ve had several thousand pounds come in just from our community, so they’ve really rallied behind us,” said teacher Sharin Scalzo with a smile.
But this is only the beginning.
Transitioning from a weekend-only program to a week-long one means they need more food. But school and business closures means demand is up.
“Within 24 hours, our number of students served doubled,” said Trusty. “On Monday, we packed enough for 600 hoping we wouldn’t need that much. We ended up using 500 meal packs in the first day."
Fueled for School said they’ve changed the way they accept donations in an effort to help protect the community.
“We are now starting to move away from those food donations to limit the number of people actually handling those boxes,” said Trusty.
Monetary donations also allow them to serve more people. They can provide a week's worth of food for about $20 per person.
As a weekend program, Fueled for School was never able to physically see the impact of what they were doing. The meals were delivered to the schools and anonymously made it into the backpacks of the children who wanted them.
But because of the new coronavirus prevention guidelines, schools are closed and people are not allowed inside their pantry.
“We are now operating a drive-up pantry and they drive up and open their trunk and ask how many people are in that family and then we will that trunk with the amount of groceries that would fill their bellies for a week,” said Trusty.
It was also the first time the teachers were able to connect in person with the people they wanted to support.
“We were met with hearts full of gratitude, but with eyes that were full of tears. We had several parents who had lost their jobs earlier in the day with restaurant closures," Trusty said as tears began to well up in her eyes.
Fueled for School said it was humbling and emotional, but they feel proud that they were able to provide a week’s worth of food for the hundreds of people who showed up.
They expect the demand to continue to grow.
“Funding is something we’re going to have to continue to work on to make sure we can sustain this program for as long as needed,” said Trusty.
Coronavirus prevention guidelines also mean fewer volunteers.
An “operation that which is typically 50-70 people has now been reduced to ten. Since Friday, we’ve been doing 12-14 hour days and many of us are also doing e-learning at home. And we (the board members) all have three or four children each,” said Trusty.
But for the teachers who launched this program, it’s a passion.
“These are our children. These are the children of our community. We love them,” said Trusty.
At the end of each year, Fueled for School pick a theme for the next school year.
“Our theme this year was 'Love Your Neighbor,'” said Shock.
The teachers say that’s exactly what their community is doing.