Connecticut Food Bank receives $16,500 from Newman’s Own to support Kids' BackPacks

(From a press release by Connecticut Food Bank)

EAST HAVEN – Connecticut Food Bank is the recipient of a $16,500 grant from Newman's Own Foundation to help support the vitally important Kids' BackPack Program, which benefits nearly 1,750 students in 16 Connecticut school districts. The program supplies the students with nutritious food during weekends when other resources, including free/reduced-price school meals, are not available to them.

"Well-nourished children tend to have fewer illnesses and better school achievement than those who are chronically hungry," said Nancy L. Carrington, president and chief executive officer of Connecticut Food Bank. "We are extremely grateful for Newman's Own Foundation's support of the Kids' BackPack Program. It is such an important component of child nutrition for those who participate."

The Kids' BackPack Program serves 68 schools in 16 towns, including Branford, Bridgeport, Danbury, East Haven, Middletown, New Haven, Norwalk, Plainfield, Putnam, Stratford, Stamford, Torrington, Trumbull, Waterbury, West Haven and Winsted. A typical packet includes two each of packages of milk, 100 percent fruit juice, two whole-grain cereals, two high-nutrition entrees and two low-fat, low-sugar snacks.

"Paul Newman believed in sharing good fortune with those in need, which is what he did when he founded Newman's Own in 1982," wrote a Newman's Own Foundation representative to the Connecticut Food Bank. "Thank you for the work that you do in your community."

One in six children in Connecticut is food insecure, meaning they do not know where their next meal is coming from. In Connecticut Food Bank's service area, 53 percent of the food-insecure population does not qualify for food stamps or other government programs, so they often must rely on other sources such as Connecticut Food Bank and others to help feed themselves and their families.

Connecticut Food Bank serves approximately 600 community-based feeding programs in six of Connecticut's eight counties: Fairfield, Litchfield, Middlesex, New Haven, New London and Windham. Connecticut Food Bank distributes 30 tons of food every business day.