Impact
More than 131,000 children in Connecticut live in food insecure households.
$10.00
CAN FEED A CHILD FOR THE WEEKEND
Filling in the Blanks is bridging the weekend meal gap for children.
Most of the children in our program get breakfast and lunch from school every weekday and would have gone hungry over the weekends.
When the obstacle of food insecurity is removed, children experience increased academic achievement in school and increase opportunities for success in their lives.
Nearly half of the low-income households in Connecticut do not qualify for federal assistance.
Meet Sharif
He is in the 5th Grade
He is an only child who came to this country from Morocco when he was in 3rd grade. To his credit, in two short years Sharif has become fluent in English and performs at or near grade level. However, his relative success in school belies how difficult it is to be a new immigrant. Sharif desperately wants to fit in and be popular, but he struggles socially because he is not yet completely acclimated to life in the United States. His parents do not speak English and as a result, Sharif's life outside of school is quite insular. He worries way more than most boys his age, especially about his parents. Although they are healthy, Sharif fears he will become orphaned if they ever get sick. What is most notable about Sharif however is that food is at the center of both his anxiety and sense of security. Read More
WE PROVIDE CONSISTENT NUTRITIONAL SUPPORT YEAR ROUND.
IN THE SUMMER FOOD IS
DISTRIBUTED AT SUMMER CAMPS AND COMMUNITY CENTERS
NOURISHED CHILDREN =
PRODUCTIVE CHILDREN. SETTING THEM ON A PATH FOR FUTURE SUCCESS IN THEIR LIVES.
OVER TWO MILLION
WEEKEND MEALS DELIVERED
5,500+ CHILDREN
FED WEEKLY
BRIDGING THE GAP BETWEEN FRIDAY’S SCHOOL PROVIDED LUNCH AND THE SCHOOL PROVIDED BREAKFAST MONDAY MORNINGS.
FITB GETS WEEKEND FOOD DIRECTLY INTO THE HANDS OF THE CHILDREN
WE HELP KIDS BE KIDS! BY FEEDING THEM OVER THE WEEKEND THEY CAN GO TO SCHOOL MONDAYS READY TO LEARN.
Testimonials
“Filling in the Blanks enables us to address the very serious issue of weekend hunger, and we would not be able to do so without this wonderful organization. Student complaints about not eating over the weekend have diminished, which is a great relief to all of us. Roxbury is indeed fortunate that when our families needed this resource, Ms. Kramer and Ms. Knight were there, and they continue to come through week after week.”
“Filling in the Blanks meets a real and practical need for our youth, and we cannot be more grateful for their unwavering commitment. We commend them to you as indeed worthy of your interest and support.”
“The Filling in the Blanks program has been a huge success in our school. The families that participate are very appreciative of the program and the healthy and balanced food provided. The faculty and staff of our building are so pleased to have this program in our building that they volunteer their time to help distribute the food to students’ lockers each week.”
“We have been very lucky to partner with Filling in the Blanks for the past three years at our schools and summer camps. The relief and food security that this program offers to our families is life changing. Each of the students and campers that participate in this program goes home with a bag that has enough food to provide all of their meals throughout the weekend. This is a huge benefit for them, as all of the youth in our programs are provided free breakfast and lunch by the school, and not all of them necessarily have food at home on the weekends. Filling in the Blanks ensures that they do.”
“Our sincere thanks to Shawnee Knight and Tina Kramer… Never doubt that removing one small worry from a child’s life can change his entire outlook.”
“The Filling in the Blanks Program has been such a valuable and important program at Stark School. The students who participate in the program not only love the food and look forward to receiving a bag each week but for many the comfort of knowing that they have something to eat on the weekend is unimaginable.”