A Twist in the Plot
A Twist in the Plot
Two years after Mill City Church began a relationship with Sheridan School, where we worship on Sunday mornings, the school administration told us a story.
“There is a situation we have been having with the students. We’ve found kids hoarding food on Friday afternoons, some have been stealing food and we’ve even found kids digging through the trash to find salvageable food to bring home on the weekends.”
They went on to explain that a good percentage of the kids at Sheridan don’t have enough to eat at home on the weekends. They shared with us that they are often coming to school on Mondays seeming very hungry for breakfast and they often can’t concentrate well on Mondays because of the hunger.
This was the story at Sheridan School and it is the story of many schools in Minneapolis today.
88% of children that attend public schools in North and Northeast Minneapolis are on free or reduced lunch. Meaning their families live at or below the poverty level.
As I drive by the playground almost daily, nearly 9 out of every 10 of those kids struggle with food insecurity on a weekly or even daily basis. Spending time with the kids for lunch each week, their conversations confirm it.
Food insecurity is a part of their story. Many have spent much of their young lives wondering where their next meal would come from.
At Mill City Church we ask two core questions, “God, what are you up to? How are we supposed to respond?”
When this “Sheridan story” was shared with us, it was as if God highlighted this need. It was as if God spoke to us saying, “It breaks my heart that these children are hungry. Will you get involved? How might you participate?”
And that’s where this story began change.
A team from our church worked with the school to discuss how this problem might be addressed. They worked together to begin a program where food would be put in the kid’s backpacks every Friday. It was decided that the program should start small, only about 30 students from one grade level.
The plot of the story began a dramatic turn: In our first month in Fall of 2010, we provided a bag of non-perishable food each weekend to 27 students. By Spring of 2011 we were serving 110 students weekly and by Spring of 2012 we were serving over 200. We now serve over 300 kids at Sheridan school each week!
Hundreds of people have given financially to make what is now known as The Sheridan Story possible. Large teams of people make it possible to pack 1500 meals on a monthly basis. A faithful group put the food in each bag on Fridays while the kids are at recess or in their classrooms.
The Friday team has been able to see a glimpse of the response from the teachers. On a number of occasions, teachers have stopped them in the hall to let them know what a difference The Sheridan Story has made for their students. Every once in a while the kids will spill into the hallway before the team is done delivering the food and exclaim how thankful they are and show their unfiltered excitement for the food.
Once a kid was even heard cheering, “Yes! I get to eat this weekend”!
Since 2010, The Sheridan Story has distributed 44,218 pounds of food, which is 36,849 meals.
There are 100,000 kids in the Twin Cities that live in food insecurity. This is a startling statistic, but the story is changing!
As we know, a really good story has more than one twist in the plot.
(to read more about the Sheridan Story or to support these efforts, visit www.TheSheridanStory.com)
A Twist in the Plot
Two years after Mill City Church began a relationship with Sheridan School, where we worship on Sunday mornings, the school administration told us a story.
“There is a situation we have been having with the students. We’ve found kids hoarding food on Friday afternoons, some have been stealing food and we’ve even found kids digging through the trash to find salvageable food to bring home on the weekends.”
They went on to explain that a good percentage of the kids at Sheridan don’t have enough to eat at home on the weekends. They shared with us that they are often coming to school on Mondays seeming very hungry for breakfast and they often can’t concentrate well on Mondays because of the hunger.
This was the story at Sheridan School and it is the story of many schools in Minneapolis today.
88% of children that attend public schools in North and Northeast Minneapolis are on free or reduced lunch. Meaning their families live at or below the poverty level.
As I drive by the playground almost daily, nearly 9 out of every 10 of those kids struggle with food insecurity on a weekly or even daily basis. Spending time with the kids for lunch each week, their conversations confirm it.
Food insecurity is a part of their story. Many have spent much of their young lives wondering where their next meal would come from.
At Mill City Church we ask two core questions, “God, what are you up to? How are we supposed to respond?”
When this “Sheridan story” was shared with us, it was as if God highlighted this need. It was as if God spoke to us saying, “It breaks my heart that these children are hungry. Will you get involved? How might you participate?”
And that’s where this story began change.
A team from our church worked with the school to discuss how this problem might be addressed. They worked together to begin a program where food would be put in the kid’s backpacks every Friday. It was decided that the program should start small, only about 30 students from one grade level.
The plot of the story began a dramatic turn: In our first month in Fall of 2010, we provided a bag of non-perishable food each weekend to 27 students. By Spring of 2011 we were serving 110 students weekly and by Spring of 2012 we were serving over 200. We now serve over 300 kids at Sheridan school each week!
Hundreds of people have given financially to make what is now known as The Sheridan Story possible. Large teams of people make it possible to pack 1500 meals on a monthly basis. A faithful group put the food in each bag on Fridays while the kids are at recess or in their classrooms.
The Friday team has been able to see a glimpse of the response from the teachers. On a number of occasions, teachers have stopped them in the hall to let them know what a difference The Sheridan Story has made for their students. Every once in a while the kids will spill into the hallway before the team is done delivering the food and exclaim how thankful they are and show their unfiltered excitement for the food.
Once a kid was even heard cheering, “Yes! I get to eat this weekend”!
Since 2010, The Sheridan Story has distributed 44,218 pounds of food, which is 36,849 meals.
There are 100,000 kids in the Twin Cities that live in food insecurity. This is a startling statistic, but the story is changing!
As we know, a really good story has more than one twist in the plot.
(to read more about the Sheridan Story or to support these efforts, visit www.TheSheridanStory.com)
I am a living testament that this program IS making a difference, in fact, I have my team assembled for this Friday morning, God bless all involved:-)
[…] it out part one here and part two […]
[…] Many of you have read the story of the Sheridan School, the building where my church worships every Sunday. I have previously shared the story of the struggle that so many of the kids have in order to simply get their basic needs met each day. (read the story HERE) […]