Relevant Information

Kids' Food Basket
  • KFB was founded in 2001 by Mary K Hoodhood after Mary Ann Prisichenko, Principal at Straight Elementary School, found some of her student taking food out of the trash to take home for dinner.

  • During their first year KFB fed 125 children at three elementary schools.

  • Kids Food Basket now provides over 2,300 children at 21 elementary schools with a sack supper as they leave school.

  • They still have 15 schools (over 3,000 kids) on their waiting list

  • At each school they serve over 80% of children are receiving free and reduced breakfast and lunch.

  • Each sack supper contains 1000 calories and five food groups

  • Contents of a typical sack supper: fresh fruit and vegetable, meat and cheese sandwich and healthy snack (crackers or granola bar) a 100% fruit juice box. On Fridays the sacks contain additional food to help through the weekend.

  • Cost of one sack supper: $0.90; Cost to feed a child a sack supper for a year $155

  • Kids Food Basket has over 2,500 volunteers, averaging over 80 each day

  • KFB receives no government funding. All funds are donated by caring individuals, corporations, civic groups and churches. Their administration costs are less than 12%

  • Last year over 20 schools participated in the Hunger Takes Flight campaign rasising enough funds to bring on an additional 350 kids this year. (47 of those were thanks to Comstock Park)

Childhood Hunger
  • Children who lack adequate nutrition are more likely to have health problems and difficulty in school

  • To thrive, children should consume between 1,800 and 2,000 calories per day

In the United States:
  • 14 million children (19%) live in poverty

  • 16.7 million children live in a food insecure household

  • An additional 9 million are at risk
In Michigan:
  • Over 500,000 children live in poverty. That's 12% of all children in the U.S. that live in poverty.

  • 19% of children under the age of 18 live in poverty, a 40% increase over the last seven years

  • 1 in 4 children under the age of five live in poverty

  • 38% of students receive free or reduced lunch
In West Michigan:
  • 1 in 3 kids (51,500 kids) in Kent & Ottawa counties live in poverty

  • 4 out of 5 kids in Grand Rapids live in poverty

  • Over the past seven years, poverty in Grand Rapids grew by nearly 10%, the sharpest rise in the country

  • The poverty rate for West Michigan Suburbs grew by just over 5%, again the sharpest rise in the country