If she had her druthers, 7-year-old Michaela would tackle not one, but two professions when she grows up.
“What do you want to be when you grow up?” Well, I got two…during the weekdays I want to be a hair stylist. And on weekends I want to be a designer.
“What kind of designer?” I want to be a fashion designer for dogs and people!
“A dog dress designer?” Yeah…I saw it on TV!”
The precocious second grader at San Francisco’s Dr. Charles Drew Academy then showed off some of her pet fashion designs on her campus-provided chromebook during an after-school program inside the multi-purpose room. Technology and daycare aren’t the only things being offered at Charles Drew. Campus officials have partnered with the Food Bank for many years to provide fresh groceries on site – including hosting our Summer Kids Food Market.
Started back in 2016, our Summer Kids Food Market program was designed to help low-income families weather the summer months when children lose access to free and reduced-price school meal programs, and many school-based pantries close when campuses shut down for the summer break.
Michaela was excited that she and her family were able to get fresh groceries through the summer months. “I like apples, oranges, bananas and mangoes..my mom puts a special sauce on the mangoes that make them super spicy and it’s good…I like that a lot.”
Michaela’s uncle, Ray Bean, is a part-time resource officer at the school and picked up groceries during the summer months too. “If you didn’t do the summer pantry thing, it would be a huge struggle with my pocketbook. I would have to go to the store and buy some of these items, and we all know how much healthy food costs these days. Your groceries are really a huge help to the entire community, especially during summertime.”
This is the third year of our Summer Kids Food Market program, and the most ambitious one yet. Four sites have been opened this year – one each in Chinatown, the Bayview, the Western Addition, and Potrero Hill – and are serving over 500 families from more than a dozen different schools in these neighborhoods.
If you would like to support innovative projects like our Summer Kids Food Markets, consider a donation today.
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