Smart Bellies – On A Mission to Leave No Belly Hungry
Smart Bellies Mission: to bridge the gap of food insecurity by providing bags of nutritious food to school aged children, allowing them to get the full benefit of their education and development.
by Lisa Blake
The energy is high, the music is bumping and the assembly line is buzzing with feel-good doing-good vibes. Smart Bellies volunteers are set up in a swift flow at long tables stacked with food in the nonprofit’s new space off Huron Road in Breckenridge. The industrial no-frills workshop churns out meals for Summit County, Lake County and Park County students and families in need.
Both coming from a nonprofit background, Sarah Schmidt and Margaret Sheehe launched Smart Bellies when they saw a Facebook post about elementary students struggling with food security and schools grappling with funding.
Smart Bellies began as a weekend food program, filling backpacks with nutritious snacks and meals for kids to take home, and has since expanded to providing snacks for Summit County and Lake County classrooms, along with weekend food supplies and holiday meals for families. Bags are filled with nutritious, kid-friendly meals — think ingredients for spaghetti or tuna mac casserole — to get families through the weekend.
Funded by donations and grants and run by a consistent stream of community volunteers, Smart Bellies is making a huge local impact. The goal is to eliminate childhood hunger in Summit County and organizers make it easy to sign up and receive these benefits with very few questions asked. They also work with teachers and administrators to identify students who might need a little help. There’s no requirement for families to prove they’re in need. It’s that simple: Sign up. Receive bags of food.
Smart Bellies offers many ways to get involved. Sign up to be a snack sponsor and contribute as little as $15 each month that will help put snacks in classrooms. Donate food or money to Smart Bellies or volunteer to shop, pack or deliver bags of food to doorsteps each week.
“Some incredibly generous donors help keep our program financed along with so many others”
~Margaret Sheehe
Margaret and Sarah bring unwavering positive attitudes and joy to every facet of Smart Bellies and they welcome volunteers with open arms and gratitude.
To learn more head to smartbellies.org
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