ABOUT
The Food2Go4Kids weekend backpack program is sponsored by the Ligonier Valley School District community which includes staff, learners and their families, and community supporters. It is coordinated by the LVSD administration and staff. Backpacks are filled with easy to prepare meals and snacks for weekends to children who are pre-qualified. The program has been initiated in response to the high percentage of learners with no access to the free school breakfast and/or lunch they receive during the week.
This wellness program is provided to learners enrolled by their parents. Learners will take home, every Friday, a backpack of nutritious, easy to use, child-friendly food. The food items may include granola bars, applesauce/pudding, canned soup, fruit cups, Poptarts, cereal, Mac ‘n cheese, oatmeal, Cheez Its, and Beef sticks. In the Ligonier Valley School District, more than one-third of the learner population is eligible for the program.
** COVID UPDATE **
Due to the school district being hybrid and/or remote, for the time being Food2go will be sending weekend bags home with learners Tuesdays and Fridays depending on which instructional model the learner's family chooses.
When packing, safety is a huge concern, and therefore, all volunteers will be required to wear a mask and gloves for the duration of packing along with maintaining a healthy distance from one another, and sanitizing before and after.
INTERNS
Zoe Ferry
Morgan Wing
Erika Moore
"I'm a senior at Ligonier Valley High School. I have had the amazing opportunity to work with Food2go4kids in previous years and am now interning through the internship program at the high school. I am hoping to gain experience in marketing so I can have prior knowledge of the subject when I attend a university to study marketing next fall. I am so excited to be able to work with my partner, Morgan Wing, and Eric Vogelsang to help kids in need and grow the program!"
"I'm a senior at Ligonier Valley High School and work with the Food2go4kids program as an intern for the 2021 semester. I've been apart of the program for 5 years now and love everything it does for the learners in our community. I plan on attending PSU in the fall of 2021 for PR/Advertising. I'm looking forward to gaining experience and learning more about the field so I am well prepared for college. I am so excited to work alongside Zoe Ferry and Eric Vogelsang to help kids in our district and promote the program more!"
"I'm currently a freshman at Indiana University of Pennsylvania studying marketing and accounting. I've enjoyed every second of helping with the program since I was in 7th grade. I worked along side of Eric and Irma Hutchinson my senior year of high school to help create the Food2go4kids internship. Truly, nothing beats the feeling of giving food to those who wouldn't eat much without it on the weekends. I was very blessed to receive Judge Christopher Feliciani Westmoreland County Youth Leadership Award for starting the packing program at the high school level."