School kids get real lesson in humanity

School kids get real lesson in humanity

Tools

Story Published: Nov 18, 2008 at 1:30 PM PDT

Story Updated: Nov 21, 2008 at 5:55 AM PDT

By Molly Shen

Watch the story
SHORELINE, Wash. -- When it was time to go on a field trip, second and third graders at Meridian Park Elementary in Shoreline didn't go to the zoo.

They didn't visit a museum.

Instead, they went to Food Lifeline to volunteer and get a real lesson in humanity.

Right away, the gloves were on, the hair was in a net and the kids were on a mission.

"I want to save people's lives so they won't starve to death," exclaimed Michelle Wang.

Food Lifeline's distribution center put them to work in a kid friendly setup with a kid friendly food.

"We're gonna like, send them out to the food banks so the hungry people can get them," explained Connor Farrand.

The kids turned an industrial size donation of frozen french fries into family size packages. In another part of the warehouse, adult volunteers labeled and boxed canned tomatoes to go out to food banks.

"We go all the way down to Longview and all the way up to Blaine," their trainer told them.

Financial contributions are up, and Food Lifeline has already received a million pounds more food than last year. And yet, the warehouse is sparse.

The surge in donations can't keep up with the bigger surge in need.

"The message we need to get out today is we really need more help," said Food Lifeline CEO Linda Nageotte. "The lines are getting longer. More and more people who have never needed help are showing up in line at food banks."

The plea: donate food or your time.

"If we sit around and wait for someone else to do it, to donate the money or someone else to spend their time," says Meridian Park teacher Jodi Steele, "It starts with us and we need to do it."

Her kids get it. It's a lesson they're learning for life.

Michelle Wang says she'll continue to volunteer as an adult.

"I'll try to help at least two days a week so I can help people get more food," she says. "It would be a very wise choice to help because they would feel your kindness when they eat their food."

Weather & Traffic

Icon
Current Temp 61.0 °F
Mostly Cloudy
More Weather

Weather & Traffic

More Weather

On Demand

Resources and info you need to prepare for the switch to DTV.

Stay Connected

YouNews

This content requires the latest Adobe Flash Player and a browser with JavaScript enabled. Click here for a free download of the latest Adobe Flash Player.

Marketplace