Newsletter, Organization Updates, Updates

Feeding Denver’s Youth

February 26, 2018

There’s a lot to love about February at We Don’t Waste. Our biggest news is that our 1,000-sq-ft refrigeration system is up and running. We were busier than ever in January, continuing to install racking and set up our new office space, and still managed to surpass our numbers from January 2017 by more than 260,000 servings of food!

As we continue to grow our impact, we’re so thankful for our many partners that make this possible. One new partnership that we’re excited about is at Denver’s South High School, where community members, school volunteers and a local nonprofit, Food for Thought, collaborate to run a Friday food pantry for students. Serving over 100 students a week, the South High School Food Pantry is a way to ensure that hunger doesn’t have to hit home for high school-aged students. They follow a choice model, allowing students to select the items and amounts of food that they then take home to their families. Since the beginning of 2018, We Don’t Waste has provided 4,670 servings of food to the pantry, allowing students to access items like fresh fruit, vegetables, and yogurt.

South High School’s student body is made up of students from 62 countries, according to a September 2017 article in the Denver Post. Designated as a “newcomer school,” South High School accepts students who may not have formal education or might not speak English. Many of the students are immigrants and refugees, sometimes having fled oppressive governments and wars. Whether they’re rebuilding their lives in the US or were born here in Denver, students should not have to go without healthy, fresh food, and this is essential to our mission at We Don’t Waste. Thanks to all of the South High School volunteers, community members and Food for Thought for making the pantry happen, allowing us to to feed more of Denver’s youth.