James Clarke Kid’s Kitchen volunteer.
When the Anchorage School District discovered that a number of children were arriving at school with empty stomachs Monday mornings, the Food Band of Alaska launched a weekend food program at Mt. View Elementary via the Children’s Lunch Box.
The program has grown to include seven Title 1 schools, and for the past four years, an eclectic group of volunteers led by Children’s Lunch Box super volunteer Clark Browne has met twice a month to spend a furious two hours packing lunch bags.
In that short time, the group of 20-some volunteers will assemble 2,500 – 3,000 lunch bags filled with items like oatmeal, breakfast bars, canned goods and ramen which will be distributed on Fridays to ensure the children have supplemental food for the weekend.
Brown is also involved with the Food Bank of Alaska, where he was instrumental in setting a record of 15.5 tons of food being donated in their annual 24-hour, door-to-door food drive.