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SOMERVILLE Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — It’s school vacation week in Massachusetts, which means that many kids across the state have the week off. For many parents, this means they are looking for activities to keep them occupied during this time too. In Somerville at the local nonprofit Food for Free, families are spending part of the week packaging up meals at the facility for those in need and loading them onto trucks, which will distribute the meals across the eastern part of the state. Families packaged up a total of 320 grocery boxes filled with several different types of fresh produce and staple pantry items such as grains and pastas as well.
“This week we have daikon radishes from a farm in Western Massachusetts, some canned beans and some canned corn [too],” said Program Manager Jennifer Pectol.
“I always try to find ways for my kids to learn the importance of giving back [because] there are very few opportunities for kids to roll up their sleeves and do the work,” said Christina, a Somerville parent. 13-year-old Elianna says that she doesn’t mind giving up part of her February break to give back [to the community.]
“If you do something nice, then something nice will come to you,” she said.
According to the mission statement on their website, Food For Free improves access to healthy food through establishing innovative programming and partnerships to overcome barriers and strengthen the community food system. We believe that access to healthy food is a fundamental right, [and] we envision a future where everyone in our community- regardless of age, income, or ability- has consistent access to fresh, delicious, healthy food.”
WBZ NewsRadio's Kim Tunnicliffe (@KimWBZ) reports
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