We joke about being hangry when we go more than a few hours without food. I’ve likened myself to a zoo animal that has very specific feeding times and gets growly when I don’t get a snack or a meal is delayed.

Sometimes we blame our inability to focus in morning meetings on the fact that no muffins were provided. As adults, we all laugh at these things. But there is nothing funny about children who face hunger on a regular basis.

As many as one in six kids in Utah don’t get enough to eat on the weekends. During the week they rely on school meal programs. On Saturday and Sunday, however, their nutritional needs aren’t always met. This makes them more vulnerable to health and behavior problems, and when they return to school on Monday they face learning difficulties.

The Utah Food Bank created the BackPack Program to mitigate these problems, discretely providing children in need with healthy, easy-to-prepare meals each Friday.

While this is just a small drop in the bucket compared to the upwards of 50,000 packs of food the Utah Food Bank dispersed through the program last year, it’s a fun surprise that we hope the children at several of the distribution sites will enjoy.

You too can join the fight against childhood hunger by donating food, time or money. Click here to learn more about volunteer opportunities with the Utah Food Bank.