Guru Simran Kaur and her team of helpers prepared food for the kids in the program
Food 4 Kids is a volunteer program, founded in 2009, which serves hungry children in and around the Española, New Mexico area. The program regularly provides bags of food to local children between ages 6-12 who do not always get enough food to eat.
The school system in Northern New Mexico provides free breakfast and lunch for qualifying children, yet often on the weekends the children go without and get very hungry. Food for Kids aims to provide these children with nutrition, to reduce their hunger, and above all to give them hope.
Guru Simran Kaur Shares the Story of How Food 4 Kids Began
In the Espanola ashram, we have a children’s program once a week during which we teach either Sikh history or Kundalini yoga.
One mother wanted her child to learn to serve more. She had heard of a program called the “Backpack Program,” a program where children from low-income families, who do not get enough to eat on the weekends, get some food to take home so it may carry them through the weekend.
Some research needed to be done, so we went online, listened to someone speaking about the program and checked with the food bank in a city nearby. They told me they didn’t have enough food to cover the kids in their own city alone, so they would never even consider coming to Espanola, our city.
That answer didn’t sit well with me. So I went to the school counselor of our neighborhood school and proposed our bringing ten bags a week for children who would need it the most.
First she looked at me a bit strange, and had to check with the Principal, etc., which took a few weeks. She told me ok, under the condition it would all be real food, no junk of any kind. So no chips, cookies, sodas, candy, etc.
Then I went back online and checked out more about the program. There are actually a few very essential rules:
A. All items have to be factory sealed (means no homemade food).
B. All items must be able to be opened by a six-year old alone; so no knives or can-opener required to open the food (means no bottles with a screw lid as this requires strength to open).
C. All items must be aseptic, so no cooling is required (a child living in a car with a parent does not have a refrigerator, and for others who have their electricity shut off, it would be a problem as well).
D. All items must be ready to eat without any cooking; microwave or otherwise (a child living in a car with a parent does not have a microwave, and for others who have their electricity shut off, it would be a problem as well).
At first this seemed complicated, but once I figured it all out, it went ok.
As we got going, I was shocked at how extremely expensive single servings are; remember we cannot give anything which requires a fridge after it is opened.
As we became able to afford to add another school, I asked the school counselor which school had the highest rate of poverty.After introducing myself to them and explaining the program etc., we started serving this school as well.
When you start something new, it takes a lot of flexibility, creativity and plain work. No need for big committees, boards or anything. Just start simple and once it works, expand.
At first people were skeptical. But over time that went away, and now they are happy to see us.
One of the Principals last year said, “It is not just the food; this bag with food is the one thing in their life they can count on because much in their home-life is not stable or reliable.”
The question: “Is this just a fad or is this for real?” can only be answered over time, when we prove our worth as Sikhs.
Guru Simran Kaur and Krishna Shiva Singh loading up food which they purchased to distribute to the kids
Guru Simran’s Tips for Running a Kids Food Program
- Shop for the right kind of food items AND look for the best prices. I regularly look at different places for sales and best prices; on occasion stores will donate food when asked.
- Find a space to store the food; or you can go shopping weekly.
- Get bags to put the food in; at first we tried actual backpacks, but that didn’t work since kids would forget to bring them back and schools do not have the personnel to keep track of which kid brought it back and which didn’t; so now we use plastic grocery bags which we get from teachers, friends etc. We are looking into paper bags, but they break so easily and it will require money to buy them weekly. This last part also goes against our goal of spending money only on groceries. I do not have the heart to tell some children they can’t get food because we spend the money on paper bags instead of free, recycled bags.
- Pack the bags.
- Drive the bags to the school(s).
We do not give the bags to the kids ourselves as a matter of privacy for the kids. The school counselor, nurse, teacher and principal all know which children need food the most and they decide which kids qualify.
Sometimes it is also a matter of shame or embarrassment for a child to admit they don’t have enough to eat. And our egos really don’t need to be thanked weekly, now do we? Do not expect a red-carpet treatment, this is Guru’s seva and staying humble while doing this is our spiritual path.
What we give in the weekly bag:
- Banana, ripe enough to be eaten immediately
- Apple(s), mostly red or yellow (few kids eat green apples)
- A juice with straw; 100% juice – not 10% and the rest is junk (a bottle requires the help of an adult, so we do not give those)
- A milk: Horizon has 8-ounce aseptic boxes with a straw
- Granola bar
- A cereal serving (single serving)
- Two muffins
- Raisins, 1-oz boxes (most stores sell them in a 6-pack)
- Pudding made with milk (the milk gives some nutritional value)
- A can of rice and beans
- A cheese stick
If we have enough money we like to add bean dip in a can with a flip-lid, which can be opened by a child without any help; or trail mix (not the ones with candy in them), which is very nutritional; or sometimes crackers and peanut butter.
During longer school breaks, we like to add a loaf of bread, peanut butter, protein bars and nuts if there is enough money. And for their summer break we were able to give each child a bag of bagels. These are so filling and can be kept for a little while outside a fridge.
As Sikhs we do not give any form of meat of course. Doing this program does not mean we compromise our values and principles, but no one has a problem with this. They are just super grateful we bring them food.
Asking for donations is essential. Once you are established and have done it for a few years, it will be easier to ask for them. Initially, we started out with just cash donations.
However, soon afterward we created a new bank account, in the ashram’s name. Now we have PayPal and are receiving automatic deposits.
The Challenge of Funding
When there is not enough money collected for food for a week/month Guru Simran Kaur pays out of her own pocket.
She says, “And yes, there have been times I had to do so. I just remembered the story of Guru Arjan and his wife who would go without food just in order to serve the Sangat – a good example to follow!”
She goes on, “When starting I made a promise to not let these children down. ‘Once y0u give your word you will have to come through, no matter what,’ the Siri Singh Sahib, Yogi Bhajan always said. So sometimes when there was not enough money, I had to dig deeper in my own wallet. And yes, it would mean the phone wouldn’t get paid till next month etc. However, knowing the kids would have food to eat, made it all worthwhile.”
Running a program of this kind requires financial planning. According to Guru Simran, “If someone gives a big donation, don’t just spend it all on food for this month. Be careful to be prepared. For example, here in the U.S., April is the month to pay taxes, so that’s a month where donations may be down and you need to plan ahead for this.”
She goes on, “Some people like to give food instead of money. Be prepared for this. We made a detailed list of food items needed every week (like where to get them, aseptic items, individually sealed items, no junk requirement, etc.) and posted this list at the ashram. Plus we had to find a place where people could drop off their donations at their convenience. Also in the daily community e-mail we post what is especially needed for the upcoming week.”
As of today Food for Kids gives 100 percent of the money donated to food; no money goes for gas or bags, for membership or accounting, for salary, rent or anything else. All these matters are covered by seva.
Guru Simran Kaur overseeing a young helper, packing up food bags for the kids
Guru Simran Shares Why this Work is Important to Her
- It is the Guru’s way.
- Children are innocent. It is our duty as adults to look after them and care for them until they are grown up. “If you cannot see GOD in all, you cannot see GOD at all” the Siri Singh Sahib always told us. I see GOD in those children and so I want to pay homage to them.
- Remember: these children are our future leaders. If we let them grow up hungry, they may become a basic, totally angry person or super manic depressive. Either way, no good can come from it.
- Knowing how much these kids are looking forward to it, knowing these kids keep asking over and again, “Am I going to get a bag with food this week?” This keeps me going. Knowing, that with all I do, it is still only enough for half of the children who need it – and that is just at these two schools. That is what is hard for me.
Once a school had a half day and a child went to the principal, asking if he could get a bag of food. The Principal had to tell him the bags only come at the end of the week. The child started to cry, and when asked why he was crying, he told the principal it was because he was so hungry.
Another time, a child was overheard saying to a friend: “I have food to eat tonight” after getting the bag. Guess she was not waiting for the weekend, just too hungry.
There was an 11-year-old boy who literally got nothing to eat from Friday’s school lunch until Monday’s school breakfast. All he had was access to water.
And there are many other stories!
As a Sikh of the Guru, serving langar to all is a basic part of life. These kids though, do not have a car to get to the ashram for langar, and neither is there very good public transportation in our area. So we go to them. No matter what, either due to a bad economy, a drug addicted parent or any other reason, kids should not have to go hungry.
The bottom line is, it is not just their future. These children will become our future leaders too.
We hope you will join us in support of our collective future. All donations go straight to the purchase of food for kids. All work is done on a volunteer basis.
Visit the Food 4 Kids Website for More Info
If you have any further questions or new ideas you can contact Guru Simran Kaur through the Food 4 Kids website.
Click Here to Donate to Food 4 Kids (designate ‘Food 4 Kids’ as the recipient)
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